Argus - Falmer start delayed

[Hadlee]

Cannot find the link but P15 MP has admitted that prolonged court proceedings will delay the start of building work scheduled for October.

As if not signing a Striker was bad enough !!!

 

[Caveman]

I really wish there was something more we could do to stop LDC doing this. Surely the people of Brighton deserve a new stadium?

 

[Blackadder]

All part of LDC's plan to slowly suffocate the life out of the Albion!

 

[Curious Orange]

from the Argus

Stadium's start stalled

by Rob Hustwayte

The High Court appeal against the Falmer stadium plan is likely to delay the start of building work on the £50 million scheme, Albion bosses have revealed.

Chief executive Martin Perry said he had no idea when Lewes District Council's bid to force a Judicial Review against the 22,000-seat stadium planning permission would be heard by a judge.

He feared any prolonged court proceedings could delay the project and place the football club under further financial strain.

Mr Perry said no work could begin on site until the legal action had run its course.

He said: "We are proceeding with as much preparatory work as we can but until we get this matter resolved we cannot predict when we will be in a position to commence work on site."

The Albion had targeted October this year to start building the new arena but that timescale now looks uncertain.

Mr Perry said claims the court case would be heard in June were pure speculation:

"I do not know where this date is coming from. At this stage we still do not know when it will go to court or how long it will take.

"I have no doubt that the stadium will be built. We will get permission but it could be that by causing further delays, Lewes hope we will be unable to sustain further losses and the extra costs we will incur if the stadium is delayed.

"Is their real agenda to try to defeat the stadium by putting the football club out of business? All I can say is, having fought for the last eight years and with the support of our unbelievable fans, we are not going to let Lewes stand in our way, despite the obstacles they try to put in front of us."

Despite the setback the club is still targeting the beginning of the 2008/09 football season to move into its new home.

A spokeswoman for Lewes District Council denied using delaying tactics and said the timescale was in the hands of the court and the Office for the Deputy Prime Minister, which is the main defendant.

She said: "We are ready to go and we have asked for the earliest possible court hearing.

"As we understand it the court will issue a hearing date when it receives the defence papers from the ODPM. June is our estimate based on the time it generally takes for things to get to court once action has begun but that is by no means certain."

The ODPM said: "We are awaiting a hearing date from the court, after which we will exchange our skeleton legal arguments. Any delays in the process are not down to the ODPM."

 

[Hadlee]

The one good thing on this is MP still has season 2008 as the opening, which suggests his original timetable had some delays built in.

 

[Barrel of Fun]

Brighton and Hove Albion serves the whole of Sussex. Lewes is our County Town.

Thanks a lot Lewes

 

[Blackadder]

It's just unf ing believeable that a council would be happy to kill the local football club just to get over a political point!!!!

 

[Hadlee]

Brighton and Hove Albion serves the whole of Sussex. Lewes is our County Town.

Thanks a lot Lewes

Perhaps after this we should start a campaign to get Lewes thrown out as our County Town ?

 

[Woodchip]

Perhaps after this we should start a campaign to get Lewes thrown out as our County Town ?

Yeah, let's have Newhaven as the county town.

 

[The Large One]

A spokeswoman for Lewes District Council denied using delaying tactics and said the timescale was in the hands of the court and the Office for the Deputy Prime Minister, which is the main defendant.

That's bollocks. The ODPM, the Albion AND the City Council are all co-defendants. In other words, all three are 'main defendants' in equal part. It's part of Lewes' case for claiming that they are not liable for the Albion's costs if - sorry, when - they lose. They clearly feel arrogant (or shit-scared) enough to think it needs re-stating.

Anyway, this is story which is a few days old. It's merely a re-gurgitation of the 'Albion in the Dark' story off the club's website from last week.

 

[Barrel of Fun]

Perhaps after this we should start a campaign to get Lewes thrown out as our County Town ?

A peasants revolt! I wonder if it can be done

 

[Tooting Gull]

What we could do with is The Argus digging up the 'smoking gun' that proves all the weasel words from Baker/LDC that they support the football club is a load of garbage.

I bet somewhere there is an internal memo, or a solicitors' letter, that suggests one way to win is to keep it going long enough to bankrupt the club, and the issue goes away.

If that was exposed, they'd get so much shit for trampling over Sussex's only pro club, they'd have to cave in. Over to Woodward and Bernstein on the news desk.

 

[Easy 10]

I bet somewhere there is an internal memo, or a solicitors' letter, that suggests one way to win is to keep it going long enough to bankrupt the club, and the issue goes away.

If that was exposed, they'd get so much shit for trampling over Sussex's only pro club, they'd have to cave in. Over to Woodward and Bernstein on the news desk.

Even if such evidence existed, I don't think LDC would give a flying f*** it it was ever exposed. They didn't care about dragging this through the Public Inquiry (£250k of public funding), they don't care about taking it to a J R against the wishes of the vast majority of their constituents (basically an open cheque on public funds, they have no idea how much it could end up costing), and they didn't care about deciding to do it without consulting anyone else about it. The council leader has maintained a stony silence on the matter (save for a brief letter in the Argus a few weeks back which said nothing they hadn't already said in the original press statement they released).

Their intentions are crystal clear, but they have such scant regard for anything other than their own blinkered campaign that nothing else matters. The only thing we can do is hope and ensure that they are severely PUNISHED at the next local elections.

 

[Tooting Gull]

I agree with all of that Easy. They actually don't give a f***. But Baker and one or two others are throwing in the odd disingenuous curveball that they do care about the Albion, so some of them are at least aware that if they are seen to be the wreckers of the club, they will have to live with consequences that, shall we say, won't be favourable in the short or long term.

 

[Curious Orange]

But Baker and one or two others are throwing in the odd disingenuous curveball that they do care about the Albion, so some of them are at least aware that if they are seen to be the wreckers of the club, they will have to live with consequences that, shall we say, won't be favourable in the short or long term.

Yeah, but how many people actually fall for that "I believe there is a better site (but won't tell you where)" bollocks?

 

[Easy 10]

I agree with all of that Easy. They actually don't give a f***. But Baker and one or two others are throwing in the odd disingenuous curveball that they do care about the Albion, so some of them are at least aware that if they are seen to be the wreckers of the club, they will have to live with consequences that, shall we say, won't be favourable in the short or long term.

Their pathetic mealy-mouthed statements about "we agree the Albion needs a stadium and wish them well in finding a suitable site" etc etc is an insult to the intelligence - they clearly couldn't give a STUFF whether the club gets a stadium or not, as long as its not in their back yard (or in this case, several miles across the hills and over a f***ing great dual carriageway from their back yard). I wish De Vecchi and her cronies a slow, painful, miserable, lonely, undignified death from bowel cancer in the near future.

 

[The Oldman]

Whilst I abhor what Lewes DC have done and hope they get their just reward I fear as has been said in other posts, Falmer is not the big issue in the Lewes DC area. It's the incinerator at Newhaven and the council are playing a canny game on that one which has great support. The Falmer issue does not concern most folk; fumes from an incinerator do.

Also Lewes Council area has it's fair share of Football haters who believe that not only do we supporters rape and pillage but that a stadium at Falmer will destroy the South Downs by setting a precedent for building . That is rubbish but that is what many believe and why they think the Council are right to object.

We have to put our faith in the JR process and Prescott's ability to deal with any judicial criticism. Let's hope Blair or Brown don't do a reshufle before JP can deal with any fall out from the Review.

 

[*Gullsworth*]

I agree with all of that Easy. They actually don't give a f***. But Baker and one or two others are throwing in the odd disingenuous curveball that they do care about the Albion, so some of them are at least aware that if they are seen to be the wreckers of the club, they will have to live with consequences that, shall we say, won't be favourable in the short or long term.

THe lib dems realy cant do a thing right.......

 

[Strike]

Brighton and Hove Albion serves the whole of Sussex. Lewes is our County Town.

Thanks a lot Lewes

not forgetting the Pompey loving county town for the west Chichester, maybe Brighton should be the county town as its the most famous place in sussex.

 

[Dave the OAP]

why is it that Arsenal started to clear the site before the Judicial Review was even heard....mmmmmm


sound a bit fishy to me