Villa Park Redevelopment

[ez]

I'm hoping to see a game from the lower north stand before the end of the season, before the last bit of terracing at Villa Park is gone. It's amazing to think an old standing terrace still exists at Villa Park albeit with seats bolted on.

[pauliewalnuts]

It's not the original, is it?

[London Villan]

None of the terrace is original. However, there was a section of wall between the Trinity and the North Stand that was the original brickwork of the original Trinity and maybe even the Victorian Upper Grounds - it still existed a few years ago when we did some work there and nothing has changed in that part of the ground since.

[PeterWithesShin]

Depends if EZ means the original North Stand terrace rather than Witton End. I think they rebuilt the terrace when doing the North, but it is the original North Stand terrace with seats bolted on.

[Ads]

Why on Earth did they design an upper tier that was narrower than the width of the pitch?

[PeterWithesShin]

It looks dated now but when it was built the North was state of the art and became the template for many other stands around the country, especially what's called the goalpost design.

[London Villan]

It does seem odd not to maximise the space - How big a reduction in capacity was it, 5000?

It was also built to accommodate the club's offices (which when they were built at the centre of the fraud investigation) instead of using the Upper Grounds buildings, which had fallen into disrepair by the 70s.

[ez]

Depends if EZ means the original North Stand terrace rather than Witton End. I think they rebuilt the terrace when doing the North, but it is the original North Stand terrace with seats bolted on.

Yes that's what I mean.

[nick harper]

It looks dated now but when it was built the North was state of the art and became the template for many other stands around the country, especially what's called the goalpost design.

Yes it was a time when most stands, even covered terraces, had posts obscuring the view so it felt a big step forward at the time. I think Norwich have the same stand behind one goal.

[Percy McCarthy]

The cynic in me is expecting some aggro at the Legia game. By all accounts they’re bringing way more over than we’ll allow in the away end, so TV and LG may be their only way in, and they’re not known for their subtlety…

The sales criteria for those are the same as everywhere else in the ground, though.

See my post above paulie re my mate at work.

Normal seats - no booking history, no ticket.

Premium experience - no booking history, no problem.

And whether one thinks this is relevant or not, that’s for a father and son with Polish names.

Ah apologies, didn't spot that inference, good point. That's surely asking for trouble.

No worries. And yes, agreed. It also seems rather grubby.

[ez]

It looks dated now but when it was built the North was state of the art and became the template for many other stands around the country, especially what's called the goalpost design.

Yes it was a time when most stands, even covered terraces, had posts obscuring the view so it felt a big step forward at the time. I think Norwich have the same stand behind one goal.

I think having AV in a different colour to the rest of the seats was something new at the time which other clubs soon copied.

[The Edge]

None of the terrace is original. However, there was a section of wall between the Trinity and the North Stand that was the original brickwork of the original Trinity and maybe even the Victorian Upper Grounds - it still existed a few years ago when we did some work there and nothing has changed in that part of the ground since.

The lower North is the original Witton End terracing. They re-profiled it when the North Stand was built. Not sure when the old Witton End terrace was built but the lower North is the oldest and last part of our connection with the old stadium. It's only a mound of earth really with concrete steps on but it really is the last link with the "good old days"

[VILLA MOLE]

There is a part  in the Simon Inglis book on British Grounds discussing Villa Park , where they knocked down the Victorian Buildings adjacent to the North Stand when it was built .  He was was quite critical that it would have been a fabulous place to keep for its heritage

[Des Little]

Not like the Villa to flatten beautiful old buildings is it?

[Ads]

I come at this from a different point of view. Stadiums are imperial projects. They're there to make a statement as well as function as a facility for sport viewing. The new Trinity might lack the uniqueness of the Old in its exterior, but its a miles better stand and absolutely dwarfs what came before, which barely reached the upper ends of the lower tier. It was small and looked daft and would look dafter still sandwiched in between a New North and the Holte.

Build and build as big as possible. Click on seat viewer now for any game in T5 and tell me that's not the best football stadium in England. No, the world. It's glorious. Soon us in K3 etc will share the absolute privilege of the North standers.