FC Utd’s Moston stadium is approved

FC United of Manchester has won its battle to gain planning approval to build a 5,000 seat community stadium at the Ronald Johnson Playing Fields in Moston, north Manchester.

A Manchester City Council planning committee voted in favour of the stadium yesterday, which will give the club its own ground for the first time. To date, it has played all of its home games at Bury FC’s Gigg Lane ground.

The committee had received more than 5,600 letters in support of the stadium and over 2,200 objecting to it.

The stadium will have floodlights, parking for 162 cars, and three other pitches, including a floodlit synthetic pitch. A function room and other on-site facilities will also be made available for community use.

Manchester-based transport planning and highway design firm, SCP, advised the Club throughout the application process with regard to the contentious issue of traffic impact and car parking around the ground.

Jim Budd, director at SCP said: “The car parking and travel plans agreed between the club and council now need to be put into action so that we are ready to respond to the demand for travel by all modes when the stadium opens its doors for the first time.

“Based on our experiences with football clubs elsewhere, I am confident that we can show the residents of Moston that the club will be successful in minimising its impact on the community.

“This is a great day for the Club and the people of Moston and everyone associated with FC United should be very proud of what they have achieved.”            

A previous plan for a stadium on land at Ten Acres Lane in Newton Heath had to be abandoned when funding cuts meant that Manchester City Council could no longer afford to provide a grant which had been pledged to the project.