Town Growth Continues..

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Town Growth Continues..
Topic Started: Jul 1 2008, 12:34 PM (63 Views)
VBM	Jul 1 2008, 12:34 PM Post #1
Huddersfields finest Posts: 13,034 Group: Admin Member #1 Joined: June 2, 2005	STADIUM chiefs today unveiled a major development expected to create more than 720 jobs and turn Huddersfield into a top tourist destination. They have announced plans for a Ł100m-plus scheme to put the Galpharm at the hub of a major leisure and commercial complex designed to attract visitors to Huddersfield and help it compete with attractions in Leeds and Manchester. The ambitious scheme will include building an outdoor ski slope, two nightclubs, a casino and bingo hall, a music venue, a pool hall, a 10-pin bowling alley and an outdoor ski slope. A ski slope was initially proposed as part of the Galpharm Stadium plan, but then withdrawn. The new proposals also include 144 flats, 21 restaurants, cafés and bars, a 150-bedroom hotel, a convenience store and sports shop, an estate and travel agency, office space and a multi-storey car park with 1,754 spaces. The ski slope would be built against the slope of Kilner Bank, avoiding the need for a towering, free-standing structure. But the scheme would mean the loss of the golf driving range. The multi-storey car park would be built on the site of the current Town Avenue car park across the river from the stadium. The other new buildings would mainly occupy land to the south of the stadium between the Pink Link Stand and the river. Stadium managing director Ralph Rimmer said a planning application for the scheme would be submitted this month.in July If the plans are approved work would begin by the end of next year and be carried out over 40 months in four phases. But Mr Rimmer stressed: "The stadium operates 12 months of the year and remains the heartbeat of the complex. The work will be done in phases, to avoid disrupting the work of the stadium." The stadium, the Odeon cinema and the health and fitness centre would all remain in operation throughout the work. Mr Rimmer said the development scheme, named HD One, aimed to turn Huddersfield into a leisure destination for people living outside the town and surrounding districts. He said: "Kirklees Council want people who live here to spend their money here rather than in Leeds or Manchester and we have looked at a variety of different leisure opportunities. "This is an attempt to bring in new and interesting things to the town. We have tried to be innovative and make it an attractive proposition for everyone." He said: "The leisure markets in Leeds and Manchester are becoming more and more sophisticated and more and more skilled at taking money from consumers. Kirklees has to compete or disappear and become a suburb of Leeds. "This scheme also goes some way to helping the local authority meet its targets for jobs and investment in the Kirklees Strategic Economic Zone, which centres on the Leeds Road corridor." Mr Rimmer said the scheme had its origins four years ago when the Kirklees Stadium Development Company Limited (KSDL) began considering ways to upgrade the stadium and make greater use of the 54-acre site. He said: "The stadium was ground- breaking when it was built in 1994 and it has added massively to the Kirklees area in general. The KSDL board are keen to do something ground-breaking once again." He said the new development would complement existing attractions, including the Stadium Health and Fitness Centre and the neighbouring Odeon multiplex cinema. Mr Rimmer said the scheme presented major challenges, including the need for improved public transport to the stadium complex, action to tackle contaminated land due to its former use as a chemicals dump and flood defence measures. Stadium chiefs had also commissioned an independent survey to assess the possible impact on town centre traders. They were also consulting local residents. The development was welcomed by Clr Robert Light, leader of Kirklees Council, which has a 40% stake in KSDL and sits alongside Huddersfield Town and Huddersfield Giants on its board. He said: "This is a great proposal which will further enhance the position of Huddersfield in the region and link the Leeds Road stadium complex to the town. "The development will offer facilities not presently in Huddersfield and help to widen the appeal of the area beyond the traditional area. "This will help develop Leeds Road and the stadium as a key leisure facility."



Valley Parader	Jul 1 2008, 12:52 PM Post #2
Advanced Poster Posts: 5,219 Group: Bradford City Member #76 Joined: March 22, 2006	Sounds great, how much are the starting price for those flats?



VBM	Jul 1 2008, 12:57 PM Post #3
Huddersfields finest Posts: 13,034 Group: Admin Member #1 Joined: June 2, 2005	Valley Parader Jul 1 2008, 01:52 PM Sounds great, how much are the starting price for those flats? Not a clue, I have only heard of all of this development today. Supposely work will only start late 2009 (even if complicated planning application is succesful) and then it will take over 3 years to fully complete the site so really even if it all runs smoothly it wont be completed until Spring 2013.



BristolRoverz	Jul 1 2008, 08:14 PM Post #4
Bristol Fucking Rovers! Posts: 11,700 Group: Bristol Rovers Member #70 Joined: January 27, 2006	Where you going to get that sort of money from? Sounds like your chairman is ambitious, good luck with it!



MYK	Jul 1 2008, 08:37 PM Post #5
Ashton Gate MYK Posts: 22,278 Group: Bristol City Member #29 Joined: June 22, 2005	Never trust a bloke called RALPH RIMMER :rolleyes: "I said to my wife.....Ralph, one of us has a problem" :lol:



VBM	Jul 2 2008, 11:52 AM Post #6
Huddersfields finest Posts: 13,034 Group: Admin Member #1 Joined: June 2, 2005	BristolRoverz Jul 1 2008, 09:14 PM Where you going to get that sort of money from? Sounds like your chairman is ambitious, good luck with it! The Stadium Company has 3 owners, HTAFC (20%), HGFRL (20%), Local Council (60%). Therefore it looks like the football club will have to find Ł20m to fund the project, if it all goes tits up the local council will have to fund it but it shouldnt. I think it should be another good source of revenue for the football club...hopefully.



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