Talks stall on rugby stadium redevelopment plans
Plans for the major redevelopment of Wakefield Trinity’s Belle Vue stadium have stalled over a disagreement with the club’s owners, council chiefs have said.
In September, Wakefield Council put forward a proposal for a £12m redevelopment, which would see a 10,000-seat stadium on the site by 2020. Plans were agreed in principle with the Super League side, which has played at Belle Vue since 1895.
However, Wakefield Council has announced that talks have now stalled after the Wakefield Trinity owners “rejected previously agreed plans” that they need to pay a commercial rent and allow the community stadium to be run and managed by a charitable trust.
Wakefield Council announced last month that it would take out a lease on the Belle Vue site to speed up the delivery of the project – an offer which it says still stands.
But, according to the council, the club’s owners have now rejected these plans and instead suggested that the stadium “be built at no cost to them, while retaining sole control over its income and operations”.
Andrew Wallhead, Wakefield Council’s corporate director for regeneration and economic growth, said: “The fact that the club’s owners will not consider paying a fair commercial rent alongside other tenants in a stadium owned and operated by a charitable trust is unbelievable, especially as we understand that the Super League deal with Sky pays them a significant sum to cover accommodation costs including reasonable rentals.
“We have worked tirelessly to bring the option of building a brand new stadium at Belle Vue to the table and we are ready and willing to commit our finances so that the project could move forward quickly and deliver a new home for rugby in the city.”
Wallhead said it was suggested in talks that Thornes Park should instead become the venue of the community stadium, an idea which was scrapped in 2008.
He said: “We were disappointed and surprised by the suggestion that, instead of the agreed plan, we should now consider developing the stadium in Thornes Park at public expense.
“It is incredible that the club’s owners expect a stadium to be delivered at no cost to them and without having to pay a normal rent. No one could deliver a community stadium without a contribution from the main tenant and public money cannot be used to finance a project where the ultimate proceeds sit within a private company.”
The club’s owners have stated that they will now proceed with ‘alternative arrangements’ but have not shared those with the council.
Manni Hussain, chairman of 88m Group, the owners of Belle Vue, said: “We are without question behind the council and will work with them to finally resolve this issue. We want to continue to help the club to deliver a new community stadium for the 2019/20 season.”
TheBusinessDesk.com has contacted Wakefield Trinity for comment.
