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Starting the long road to salvation
Sam Kirby28/ 2/2008
ONE week after the Advertiser exclusively revealed the beginning of work to the much-anticipated City of Salford Stadium, club supremo John Wilkinson hosted an offical launch day to tell the rest of the press what we already knew - the £35m project was underway.
While the site at present resembles an overgrown wasteland, the bulldozers are hard at work and in two years, 67 acres of the 80 acre site will be transformed into a £130m sporting and leisure development, at the heart of which will sit the new stadium.
John Wilkinson, Salford City Reds club chairman for 26 years said: "I have been behind this scheme since the first day it was talked about and it makes me very proud and excited to be a part of it and to see the long term plans come into fruition.
"Everything is coming together and the 20,000 capacity stadium and robust business plan will provide us with the right funding to make sure we get the right team on the field."
The £35m iconic stadium is uniquely shaped to allow motorists on the M60 bridge at Barton impressive views directly into the stadium. The modern site will house an exhibition centre, a 210-bedroom four star hotel and parking for 1,500 cars with efficient transport links to both Manchester and Salford, leading Adam Thomas, managing director of Red City Developments to dub it ‘the gateway to Salford’.
He went on to say: "This is undoubtedly one of the finest locations in the north west, right at the hub of the motorway network and is a very important site."
Council leader John Merry added: "It is going to benefit everyone both at the club and those in the city.
"Anyone crossing that bridge will have an excellent view of the stadium and the whole site and anyone coming into Salford will have a much higher opinion of the whole area. Prosperity of the city is incredibly important.
"We are proud of our past but we don’t want to live in our past and this stadium represents both the club and the city’s move to the future."
And while the development is expected to benefit all of Salford, it also holds crucial in the Reds bid for Super League status.
When asked about the impact the stadium will have, club captain Malcolm Alker said: "It’s definitely the way forward and in order to compete with our rivals we need this.
"With more money in the club we’ll get better training and facilities and from then on the buck stops with us, it’s down to us to perform."
However, while the wheels are in motion regarding preparation for the new stadium, such is the size of the task at hand that construction will not actually begin until the summer.
The massive development needs precision planning to cover each area working in conjunction with the Greater Manchester Ecology Unit, the Environment Agency and Highways agency to ensure no details are overlooked.
If all goes to plan the Reds should be ready to leave their home at The Willows for the new stadium in time for the new Super League season in 2010. However with over 100 years of history at The Willows this will not be without sentiment.
As head coach Shaun McRae, said: "We have wonderful memories of the Willows but this is an excellent change and a chance to become more modern which better suits the game."
A feeling echoed by club chairman John Wilkinson, who said: "I suspect a tear will fall at the final whistle of the last game at The Willows.
"But within an hour it will pass and then we will be looking forward to moving to our new home and a bright future."
What do you think of the new stadium? If you are a Reds fan or a resident of Barton, write to us at salfordadvertiser@gmwn.co.uk, or click on 'Submit comments'
Most recent 2 of 2 user comments
Mark
2/03/2008 at 05:27
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