Let's All Laugh At... Let's All Laugh At West Ham

[WorcesterTHFC]

For new-builds you could well be right. But United have to chuck some serious money at Old Trafford in the not-too-distant, surely?

From what I've read, Old Trafford's really looking and feeling a bit shabby these days, and they did some major work on it less than 30 years ago, if memory serves.

United are restricted in their options by the railway right next to the stadium, so there's no easy solution for them.

 

[Col_M]

With things as they are now, I suspect Everton's new stadium will be the last major stadium to be built for a good 10 years or more.

they’ll sell it to Tranmere for peanuts to get out of their financial mess.

 

[TheHodFather]

From what I've read, Old Trafford's really looking and feeling a bit shabby these days, and they did some major work on it less than 30 years ago, if memory serves.

United are restricted in their options by the railway right next to the stadium, so there's no easy solution for them.

It was expanded massively during Fergie's reign - from about 45k to the current 75k. But it was all just tacking on new tiers to existing stands. Capacity-wise they're already comfortably the largest in the country, so they don't necessarily need to go bigger, they just need something better. I seem to recall suggestions previously that they could actually build over the railway line (i.e. the tracks would basically end up in a sort of tunnel under the stadium) but I think that was just an "it's technically possible" rather than them having any sort of planning approval to do it.

 

[Frozen_Waffles]

It is such a piss poor position for the taxypayer to be in and people involved should be held accountable, it was extremely clear from the outset that the amount being paid by West Ham was not market value and was insufficient for upkeep.

Brady thinks she got an amazing deal and she did, but everyone involved knew that there was going to be a time when the running costs were going to be too much to bear, perhaps this point has come far quicker than they expected due to the temporary nature of parts of the design. But perhaps she knows that West Ham will have the upper hand again when it comes to resolving it all.

Big question is what happens next, I do not know what clauses there are in the agreement but clearly being maintained by the taxpayer is not tenable. I can see it being sold to West Ham at a cut rate deal, Levy will be circling if that occurs and of course will be paying attention to what happens to the running track.

West Ham claim they cannot afford to pay the maintenance, well they most certainly can, they may need to raise ticket prices or perhaps manage their transfer and wage bill more appropriately.

Depending on what the contract says the local authority may well be on the hook for maintenance for 90 years but surely there will be periodic review of the rent paid? If there is a way out of the contract I could see West Ham being told they are going to be evicted, leaving them the option of buying it or paying market rate for rent.

Who knows what will happen, I guess we can try enjoy speculating over the shit show. Although certainly don't enjoy that taxpayers are helping a football club when so much of the country appears to be fucked.

I think that's optimistic, West Ham will be fine in this. They've signed a contract, any suggested annulment is impossible. West Ham won't buy it, why would they?

I don't see an out for the government,

Levy kicked up a right fuss when West Ham got the deal, if they try to sell it to them Levy will be arming the lawyers anyway.

Unless there was something untowards in the deal there is nothing anyone can do.

A ridiculous deal that should have never happened, Spurs offered (if memory serves) to build a dedicated athletics track and convert the stadium to purpose.

It's a shit football stadium, but it's West Ham so if the shoe fits and all that.

Sebastian Coe is/was the problem, an absoloute ass hat.

 

[nailsy]

How much do they pay for the stadium each month? And does the price go up with inflation?

 

[FibreOpticJesus]

It was expanded massively during Fergie's reign - from about 45k to the current 75k. But it was all just tacking on new tiers to existing stands. Capacity-wise they're already comfortably the largest in the country, so they don't necessarily need to go bigger, they just need something better. I seem to recall suggestions previously that they could actually build over the railway line (i.e. the tracks would basically end up in a sort of tunnel under the stadium) but I think that was just an "it's technically possible" rather than them having any sort of planning approval to do it.

Or the money. Building over railway or underground rail is incredibly difficult from a safety point of vie. Any temporary and permanent works will be incredibly expensive. And then you have the bureaucracy that goes with Network Rail and the train companies. See you next century on that one

 

[FibreOpticJesus]

With all the Net Zero requirements it is not easy to get planning for major demolition. The planners will want to see as much of the current structure retained. The environmental cost of demolition is significant and the planners will want to see as much of the existing structure reused rather than removed. An example of the latest thinking on this can be seen at the M&S building in Oxford Street where planning is was not granted due to them not using the existing building. I am aware that united are fully aware of the net zero problem for any new stadium.

 

[Oscar22]

Tbh I never wanted it and I’m glad they got it, and that isn’t even just the hindsight of how crap it is as a stadium.

I hated the idea of us moving, we’re a north London team and heading east and pitching up there just never felt right. It was so much better for us that we could just rotate a little and build where we already were. Feels like we kept all history and tradition in tact whilst getting a vastly improved stadium.

Would never trade ours for that soul less bowl and a pair of binoculars.

 

[Marty]

Tbh I never wanted it and I’m glad they got it, and that isn’t even just the hindsight of how crap it is as a stadium.

I hated the idea of us moving, we’re a north London team and heading east and pitching up there just never felt right. It was so much better for us that we could just rotate a little and build where we already were. Feels like we kept all history and tradition in tact whilst getting a vastly improved stadium.

Would never trade ours for that soul less bowl and a pair of binoculars.

It obviously has worked out brilliantly for us but had we taken over that stadium we would've ripped out the Athletics track and redone it as a pure football stadium. We would not have needed binoculars.

Premier League foes had bitter feud over iconic arena and planned to demolish it

Tottenham played host to 61,726 fans in their wild 4-1 defeat against Chelsea on Monday night at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. It’s regarded as one of the most impressive stadiums in not jus…

talksport.com

West Ham's planned involved reducing the capacity from 80,000 to 60,000, with the running track staying put, although Spurs also tried to argue that such a proposal would leave fans too far away from the pitch and make them struggle to actually see the ball.

They instead proposed to knock down the stadium entirely and rebuild it as a football ground and refurbish the National Sports Centre in Crystal Palace to compensate for removing the athletics track in plans that would have costed around £250million in total.

 

[Oscar22]

It obviously has worked out brilliantly for us but had we taken over that stadium we would've ripped out the Athletics track and redone it as a pure football stadium. We would not have needed binoculars.

Premier League foes had bitter feud over iconic arena and planned to demolish it

Tottenham played host to 61,726 fans in their wild 4-1 defeat against Chelsea on Monday night at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. It’s regarded as one of the most impressive stadiums in not jus…

talksport.com

That’s fair, but in all honesty even if we built the stadium we have now on the site of the Olympic stadium I still wouldn’t have been a fan of it - for me the over riding feeling was not wanting to up sticks and move to East London.

 

[Led's Zeppelin]

I think that's optimistic, West Ham will be fine in this. They've signed a contract, any suggested annulment is impossible. West Ham won't buy it, why would they?

I don't see an out for the government,

Levy kicked up a right fuss when West Ham got the deal, if they try to sell it to them Levy will be arming the lawyers anyway.

Unless there was something untowards in the deal there is nothing anyone can do.

A ridiculous deal that should have never happened, Spurs offered (if memory serves) to build a dedicated athletics track and convert the stadium to purpose.

It's a shit football stadium, but it's West Ham so if the shoe fits and all that.

Sebastian Coe is/was the problem, an absoloute ass hat.

I don’t think it’s that simple.

theres a hell of a lot of disquiet among Wham fans who really don’t like the dreadful stadium, and who can see much of it decaying in front of their eyes.

The fact that they have a contract with 89 years still to run is as much if not more of a millstone for them as an asset.

One thing is certain. A huge amount of money is needed, or soon will be, to make that stadium work. Where is that money coming from?

You can’t spray a turd with Old Spice and make it smell nice, however hard you try. Although to be fair they’ve had more practice over the decades than most.

 

[superted4]

I don’t think it’s that simple.

theres a hell of a lot of disquiet among Wham fans who really don’t like the dreadful stadium, and who can see much of it decaying in front of their eyes.

The fact that they have a contract with 89 years still to run is as much if not more of a millstone for them as an asset.

One thing is certain. A huge amount of money is needed, or soon will be, to make that stadium work. Where is that money coming from?

You can’t spray a turd with Old Spice and make it smell nice, however hard you try. Although to be fair they’ve had more practice over the decades than most.

Exactly, so even if West Ham we’re to be given it for free, which they won’t as the land is valuable, there’s no way they can afford the £1billion plus to rebuild the stadium, even if they do it on a piecemeal basis, they can’t afford to do it.

heck even Roman balked at rebuilding Stamford bridge, like someone said, think Everton will be the only new build for a very very long time. Think the closet will be anfield if they decide to increase the two final stands there

 

[Mycroft Jones]

How much do they pay for the stadium each month? And does the price go up with inflation?

At the time they took over the stadium the rent was reported at £2.5 Million and now as about £4 Million. I believe there are all sorts of conditions based on number of games etc, they even get a rent cut if they're relegated.

 

[muppetman]

Not if we outbid them

Couldn't find the De Niro gif I wanted, but this one does as well.

 

[SirHarryHotspur]

Every Hammers home game lets do a rain dance so they get drenched through the leaky roof. Wembleys no better , for one the the cup games , might have been Rochdale with all the snow I had a seat on the halfway line on the Wembley Club tier and there was a contant drip of water coming through the roof.

 

[Flynn]

At the time they took over the stadium the rent was reported at £2.5 Million and now as about £4 Million. I believe there are all sorts of conditions based on number of games etc, they even get a rent cut if they're relegated.

I think we paid something like £20m a season for Wembley to put things in perspective.

 

[Phantom]

I think we paid something like £20m a season for Wembley to put things in perspective.

The problem with this comparison is that one is a football stadium the other is a ramshackle collection of scaffolding, with a leaky roof and a running track around the pitch.

 

[NinjaTuna]

That’s fair, but in all honesty even if we built the stadium we have now on the site of the Olympic stadium I still wouldn’t have been a fan of it - for me the over riding feeling was not wanting to up sticks and move to East London.

It would have given Arsenal fans a lot of fuel, considering the Woolwich jokes we make about them having moved from South London

 

[LondonOllie]

Controversial plans for West Ham to take over playing fields in east London have been put on ice after a council U-turn.

Redbridge Council last year said it would enter into negotiations with the Premier League side for a lease at Oakfield Playing Fields in Fairlop, despite warnings this would make a grassroots team who use the pitches, Bealonians FC, homeless.

West Ham had intended to bring sporting and outreach facilities to the site.
But the Bealonians, which has 600 players in 29 youth teams and 10 adult teams, launched a petition signed by more than 11,000 people and rallied against the move outside the council’s offices.

On Tuesday, the council announced a U-turn, saying in a statement: “We will not be pursuing the decision made at Cabinet on October 19 regarding Oakfield Playing Fields."

The spokesman said no negotiations had been entered into with West Ham over the lease “following legal advice”.

Terry Barlow, chairman of Bealonians FC, said: “Whilst it’s good news that our club still has the opportunity to remain at Oakfield, I’d urge West Ham United to reconsider their need for the site and recognise the disruption and uncertainty they are causing to one of the largest grassroots clubs in the East London and Essex area.

“The premier league club are aware it’ll be virtually impossible for our club to find a site large enough with appropriate facilities in the Hainault/Barkingside vicinity.

"As one of the richest clubs in world football West Ham should be meeting their requirements by investing in, and bringing back to life, one of the many dormant sports grounds.

“Instead, they are choosing to make one of the largest ‘not for profit’ grassroots football clubs homeless, not to mention the hundreds more made up of five cricket clubs, the muslim prayer group and local residents who all use this important public recreation site.”

West Ham declined to comment.
Council officials previously said that the Bealonians were using the fields without formal permission.

But the characterisation was rejected by the club who say they were asked to maintain the site at the start of Covid by the council, which it did.



http://eveningstandard.pressreader.com/article/7205366001649668

 

[KILLA_SIN]

With all the Net Zero requirements it is not easy to get planning for major demolition. The planners will want to see as much of the current structure retained. The environmental cost of demolition is significant and the planners will want to see as much of the existing structure reused rather than removed. An example of the latest thinking on this can be seen at the M&S building in Oxford Street where planning is was not granted due to them not using the existing building. I am aware that united are fully aware of the net zero problem for any new stadium.

I might be wrong but I thought Gove got involved and said no to the demolition rather than the planners. I remember reading M&S complaining about Goves involvement