Good-bye Clarence Park [No.1].

[EFM The Firm, The Voice]

The main stand can be knocked down and devolped, if we buy the land from network rail behind the stand, which they would probably sell as it means they wouldn't have to maintain it, we could use that.

Buy the banks all the way to Hatfeild Road and set up an entrance that can be used 24 hours which is sepearated from the park thus sparing York Road and the residents from any late night functions.

The cola stand could quite easily be made into a seater stand while the terreces could be covered no problem and maybe extended as land is behind both of them.

If people can access the club from Hatfeild Road you could set up function rooms within 2 mins walk of a mainline station, a gym that commuters could use that won't involve going home first and driving to Cannons or Westminster Lodge, there are some revenue streams!

 

Loads of grounds are still in residental areas, we have plenty of parking at the station and even the town centre, which can be walked in 10 mins. I mean how many car parking spaces are we going to have at a new ground, bet it won't be as many as we have access to now!

[MiddxSaint]

I used to work in the Midland Bank in Hatfield Road, Fleetville. It's not there now, so can't buy that one. Bertie Butcher used to be the guard there but I'm not sure if it was the ex-player.

[Laz]

Quote:

EFM The Firm, The Voice said:
Loads of grounds are still in residental areas, we have plenty of parking at the station and even the town centre, which can be walked in 10 mins. I mean how many car parking spaces are we going to have at a new ground, bet it won't be as many as we have access to now!

As the proposed ground will have 10,000 seats and it is out of town and probably away from any street parking or public transport, I expect it will have about 5,000 car parking spaces!

Perhaps AFF could tell us how many acres that would be?

[AFF]

The standard dimensions of a car parking space to Highways Agency requirements is 2.4m x 4.8m, Laz. the minimum distance between two rows of 'side-by-side' car parking spaces is 6.2m for turning and circulation space. You will recognise, therefore, that in a car park, approximately 40% of the surface is covered by parked cars and 60% is for circulation etc.

 

Depending on the shape of the land, therefore, a 5000 space car park would require approximately 3.14 acres or thereabouts.

 

Just one small point before we move on, however.

 

I made a post earlier on this thread concerning current day thinking by the Planning Authorities regarding car parking at sports stadiums. They don't like loads of parking, in a nutshell, but rather they want to see innovative methods on the part of the applicant/operator to get spectators to the facility by something other than a motor car.

 

By way of example, I read somewhere that the most recent serious discussions betweeen Luton Town FC and Luton Borough Council concerning the provision of a new stadium at Junction 10 provided for a 30,000 seat stadium with only around 4,500 car spaces.

 

If that's tha case, and if ours is to be built on the roundabout at the bottom of the M10, and if we are to have 5000 spaces, a joint venture with the Hatters to park visiting fans to their place at the car park at the Wilfred Minter De Havilland Superdome and bus 'em up to Junction 10 could be a money-spinner.

 

That'll be 250 guineas plus VAT. My fee account is in the post.

[AFF]

Someone has just sent me a PM to the effect that one of the schemes on one of the sites considered by Brighton [and Hove Albion?] jointly with the Local Authority provided for no parking whatsoever. Their new ground at Withdean has limited parking and they had to provide sites for three 'Park N Ride' schemes in order to obtain consent.

 

Bus tickets on public transport on match-days are printed with a discount for entry to the ground on the reverse, I believe. It's that kind of stuff that planning authorities look for. Bike sheds etc.

 

One last point before another invoice is triggered. Someone else couldn't picture what one acre 'looks like'.

 

The grassed area at Fortress Clarence Park is approximately one acre in size.

[Laz]

An acre is about 65 yards squared I believe?

 

3.14 acres seems small for 5,000 cars! I'll get the calculator out in a minute and work it out!

 

I'd say the grassed area at CP is roughly 3 or 4.

[Iron Webbo]

Laz, The acre is the only imperial unit of area in common use, other than, perhaps, the square-foot, and the square mile.

 

FYI, a rood is an area of 1 furlong by 1 rod, or 1210 sq. yds. An acre is four roods, or 4840 sq. yards.

 

An acre is traditionally thought of as the area that could be ploughed by a team of oxen in a morning without tiring them (you learn a lot like this out in Suffolk).

 

From memory, I would say the green bit at The Park is about an acre and a half.

 

Kind regards, etc.

[Laz]

There is also a measurement called a perch or rod! It is about 4.5 yards, and like your acre, I belive it is related to the width of a team of oxen and therefore the distance between ridges of ploughing! An acre, I think, is 160 square rods.

 

I'll let you do the maths!

[MiddxSaint]

Article dated 1/6/06 but only just noticed it.

 

http://www.ukinvestmentadvice.co.uk/st-albans-city-fc-green-belt.htm