Villa Park Redevelopment

[Monty]

I just love the idea that we could all be happily in agreement about some putative new stadium when we recently lost all of our shit over the attitude of a cartoon lion in a badge. Dexter or affronté? Let the fans decide.

[Brend'Watkins]

One thing I’ve noticed while a lot of clubs have moved to new grounds, how much the away fans like and appreciate Villa Park and the atmosphere of a traditional club
It happens more and more as the football ground landscape becomes very similar

There is always very favourable comments by the away visitors, proper ground, proper club all that sort of stuff
I reckon it would be away fans favourite ground

And there’s us saying we should knock it down. It’s an absolute joke
There be an outcry from Villa fans if that ever happened and not only Villa fans
It would be like knocking down Hever Castle because it isn’t roomy enough and the toilets need attention

I’ve been to most of the new grounds They are all nice, but there’s something missing
Let’s not become the local counsellors of the 60’s and 70’s knocking down precious buildings and building shit that won’t last in its place

Take the Villa away from Villa Park and you take the heart out of the club

Agree John, It's bad enough that we demolished the old Trinity stand in it's entirety to make way for the current one. It isn't exactly terrible but with a bit of architectural ingenuity we could have retained a lot of the old one to keep more of the essence of what Villa Park is to us and the footballing world. Football is an important part of our culture to the country and ironically as we approach our 150th year of existence we have actual Villa fans talking about moving or demolishing just to satisfy our need for increased capacity. I don't get it. Yes, we need some increased capacity and improvements none of which are insurmountable. Resolve issues and work towards that should be everyone's aim. We are a unique football club in that we have a unique ground in a unique location not that far from the center of Birmingham.  It's the envy of others and should be cherished by us all. 

[Axl Rose]

One thing I’ve noticed while a lot of clubs have moved to new grounds, how much the away fans like and appreciate Villa Park and the atmosphere of a traditional club
It happens more and more as the football ground landscape becomes very similar

There is always very favourable comments by the away visitors, proper ground, proper club all that sort of stuff
I reckon it would be away fans favourite ground

And there’s us saying we should knock it down. It’s an absolute joke
There be an outcry from Villa fans if that ever happened and not only Villa fans
It would be like knocking down Hever Castle because it isn’t roomy enough and the toilets need attention

I’ve been to most of the new grounds They are all nice, but there’s something missing
Let’s not become the local counsellors of the 60’s and 70’s knocking down precious buildings and building shit that won’t last in its place

Take the Villa away from Villa Park and you take the heart out of the club

Agree John, It's bad enough that we demolished the old Trinity stand in it's entirety to make way for the current one. It isn't exactly terrible but with a bit of architectural ingenuity we could have retained a lot of the old one to keep more of the essence of what Villa Park is to us and the footballing world. Football is an important part of our culture to the country and ironically as we approach our 150th year of existence we have actual Villa fans talking about moving or demolishing just to satisfy our need for increased capacity. I don't get it. Yes, we need some increased capacity and improvements none of which are insurmountable. Resolve issues and work towards that should be everyone's aim. We are a unique football club in that we have a unique ground in a unique location not that far from the center of Birmingham.  It's the envy of others and should be cherished by us all. 

Well said, both.

[avfc456]

One thing I’ve noticed while a lot of clubs have moved to new grounds, how much the away fans like and appreciate Villa Park and the atmosphere of a traditional club
It happens more and more as the football ground landscape becomes very similar

There is always very favourable comments by the away visitors, proper ground, proper club all that sort of stuff
I reckon it would be away fans favourite ground

And there’s us saying we should knock it down. It’s an absolute joke
There be an outcry from Villa fans if that ever happened and not only Villa fans
It would be like knocking down Hever Castle because it isn’t roomy enough and the toilets need attention

I’ve been to most of the new grounds They are all nice, but there’s something missing
Let’s not become the local counsellors of the 60’s and 70’s knocking down precious buildings and building shit that won’t last in its place

Take the Villa away from Villa Park and you take the heart out of the club

Agree John, It's bad enough that we demolished the old Trinity stand in it's entirety to make way for the current one. It isn't exactly terrible but with a bit of architectural ingenuity we could have retained a lot of the old one to keep more of the essence of what Villa Park is to us and the footballing world. Football is an important part of our culture to the country and ironically as we approach our 150th year of existence we have actual Villa fans talking about moving or demolishing just to satisfy our need for increased capacity. I don't get it. Yes, we need some increased capacity and improvements none of which are insurmountable. Resolve issues and work towards that should be everyone's aim. We are a unique football club in that we have a unique ground in a unique location not that far from the center of Birmingham.  It's the envy of others and should be cherished by us all.

Spot on, it would be utter madness to leave Villa Park.

[Rico]

It seems to me that the big stumbling block to increasing the capacity past 52k is the Doug Ellis. The question for right now imo is do we need a larger capacity? If in say ten years or so we are selling out at 52k then fair enough, but again it's begs the question what could be done to improve or increase the capacity of that stand considering the way it is hemmed in by the road, and the local residents right to light.

[Percy McCarthy]

It seems to me that the big stumbling block to increasing the capacity past 52k is the Doug Ellis. The question for right now imo is do we need a larger capacity? If in say ten years or so we are selling out at 52k then fair enough, but again it's begs the question what could be done to improve or increase the capacity of that stand considering the way it is hemmed in by the road, and the local residents right to light.

Have you been reading the thread? Or anything else about the ground since last night?

[Brazilian Villain]

One thing I’ve noticed while a lot of clubs have moved to new grounds, how much the away fans like and appreciate Villa Park and the atmosphere of a traditional club
It happens more and more as the football ground landscape becomes very similar

There is always very favourable comments by the away visitors, proper ground, proper club all that sort of stuff
I reckon it would be away fans favourite ground

And there’s us saying we should knock it down. It’s an absolute joke
There be an outcry from Villa fans if that ever happened and not only Villa fans
It would be like knocking down Hever Castle because it isn’t roomy enough and the toilets need attention

I’ve been to most of the new grounds They are all nice, but there’s something missing
Let’s not become the local counsellors of the 60’s and 70’s knocking down precious buildings and building shit that won’t last in its place

Take the Villa away from Villa Park and you take the heart out of the club

Agree John, It's bad enough that we demolished the old Trinity stand in it's entirety to make way for the current one. It isn't exactly terrible but with a bit of architectural ingenuity we could have retained a lot of the old one to keep more of the essence of what Villa Park is to us and the footballing world. Football is an important part of our culture to the country and ironically as we approach our 150th year of existence we have actual Villa fans talking about moving or demolishing just to satisfy our need for increased capacity. I don't get it. Yes, we need some increased capacity and improvements none of which are insurmountable. Resolve issues and work towards that should be everyone's aim. We are a unique football club in that we have a unique ground in a unique location not that far from the center of Birmingham.  It's the envy of others and should be cherished by us all.

Spot on, it would be utter madness to leave Villa Park.

Agree 110%.

[Rico]

It seems to me that the big stumbling block to increasing the capacity past 52k is the Doug Ellis. The question for right now imo is do we need a larger capacity? If in say ten years or so we are selling out at 52k then fair enough, but again it's begs the question what could be done to improve or increase the capacity of that stand considering the way it is hemmed in by the road, and the local residents right to light.

Have you been reading the thread? Or anything else about the ground since last night?

Yes.

[jon collett]

It seems to me that the big stumbling block to increasing the capacity past 52k is the Doug Ellis. The question for right now imo is do we need a larger capacity? If in say ten years or so we are selling out at 52k then fair enough, but again it's begs the question what could be done to improve or increase the capacity of that stand considering the way it is hemmed in by the road, and the local residents right to light.

That stand has never really been fit for purpose. There was no architect and the then stadium manager went to Jewson and built it. the lower tier had to be completely rebuilt due to asbestos and the upper tier has the most narrow concourses imaginable. It was always likely to be rebuilt at some point because of the quality.

[LeeB]

It seems to me that the big stumbling block to increasing the capacity past 52k is the Doug Ellis. The question for right now imo is do we need a larger capacity? If in say ten years or so we are selling out at 52k then fair enough, but again it's begs the question what could be done to improve or increase the capacity of that stand considering the way it is hemmed in by the road, and the local residents right to light.

That stand has never really been fit for purpose. There was no architect and the then stadium manager went to Jewson and built it. the lower tier had to be completely rebuilt due to asbestos and the upper tier has the most narrow concourses imaginable. It was always likely to be rebuilt at some point because of the quality.

Fully agreed

[AV82EC]

It seems to me that the big stumbling block to increasing the capacity past 52k is the Doug Ellis. The question for right now imo is do we need a larger capacity? If in say ten years or so we are selling out at 52k then fair enough, but again it's begs the question what could be done to improve or increase the capacity of that stand considering the way it is hemmed in by the road, and the local residents right to light.

That stand has never really been fit for purpose. There was no architect and the then stadium manager went to Jewson and built it. the lower tier had to be completely rebuilt due to asbestos and the upper tier has the most narrow concourses imaginable. It was always likely to be rebuilt at some point because of the quality.

Fully agreed

It’s a fitting monument to the man who’s name is on its side.

[London Villan]

Id imagine there will outdoor benches and marquees, to give it the full urban streetfood feel.

Be interesting to see how value engineered the new stand is too.

Sorry to be a bit thick but I’m not familiar with term value engineered, any chance of a translation that my old brain will understand.

Starts off with all bells and whistles, costs cut as it goes along.

New buildings usually start off as a grand palace with lots of innovation and cutting edge ideas, and end up as a square box. Form follows function.

Ironic that the original Trinity broke all of those rules with Rinder’s “money no object” approach to the architecture.

However, it almost bankrupted the club and cost Rinder his job.


The Villa Live (on the cheap) isn't a bad option and taps into a very popular trend of the post-industrial type venue that are springing up everywhere. The question is why have we chosen the cheaper, less adaptable option. 

[LeeB]

Isn't it just?

[Chico Hamilton III]

Id imagine there will outdoor benches and marquees, to give it the full urban streetfood feel.

Be interesting to see how value engineered the new stand is too.

Sorry to be a bit thick but I’m not familiar with term value engineered, any chance of a translation that my old brain will understand.

Starts off with all bells and whistles, costs cut as it goes along.

New buildings usually start off as a grand palace with lots of innovation and cutting edge ideas, and end up as a square box. Form follows function.

Ironic that the original Trinity broke all of those rules with Rinder’s “money no object” approach to the architecture.

However, it almost bankrupted the club and cost Rinder his job.

"Finance is important, but we should never forget that we are not talking about a mere business. This is the Aston Villa football club, and it deserves nothing short of the best"

[Risso]

The Villa Live (on the cheap) isn't a bad option and taps into a very popular trend of the post-industrial type venue that are springing up everywhere. The question is why have we chosen the cheaper, less adaptable option. 

The excuse seems to be that it could be done quicker, but I don't buy that. Sometimes sticking up a brand new building that's been planned can be quicker than trying to retrofit an existing old building.

It just seems very odd that they've gone to the trouble of having ambitious plans drawn up, submitted them, had them approved, and are now massively scaling back.