Villa Park Redevelopment

[dave.woodhall]

Is an increase of capacity of around 8k worth it for what it would cost ?

It absolutely is. We have always had a top stadium. We currently have 2 stands which are nowhere near that standard. Penny pinching on the Witton lane stand and financial skullduggery on the North Stand are the reasons behind the current state of affairs. 2 brand spanking new state of the art stands would put Villa Park back in it's rightful place as one of England's finest stadiums.

Witton Lane was built on the cheap but the North Stand was state of the art at the time.

It was state of the art but was nothing like the stand it should of been. I believe that people were jailed due to financial irregularities surrounding its construction.

They didn't go to prison but there were a couple of fraud convictions. There was nothing wrong with the stand, it was the best in the country at the time, it just cost more than it should have done.

[DB]

Both Witton and Trinity were built on the cheap? They certainly look that way. Trinity facade has got better in recent years, but when it was first built it looked awful.

[eamonn]

How has it got better, the facade faded ?

[Risso]

They didn't go to prison but there were a couple of fraud convictions. There was nothing wrong with the stand, it was the best in the country at the time, it just cost more than it should have done.

Somebody added photos of all the Midlands clubs' grounds to the "Old Pics of Brum Facebook group, showing the grounds now and then. Here's the old one of Villa Park, with the North Stand looking quite new and impressive compared to the older stands.

[dave.woodhall]

Both Witton and Trinity were built on the cheap? They certainly look that way. Trinity facade has got better in recent years, but when it was first built it looked awful.

The Witton was definitely done as cheaply as it could have been. Trinity wasn't that bad but a comparatively small amount extra could have made it spectacular.

[The Edge]

Is an increase of capacity of around 8k worth it for what it would cost ?

It absolutely is. We have always had a top stadium. We currently have 2 stands which are nowhere near that standard. Penny pinching on the Witton lane stand and financial skullduggery on the North Stand are the reasons behind the current state of affairs. 2 brand spanking new state of the art stands would put Villa Park back in it's rightful place as one of England's finest stadiums.

Witton Lane was built on the cheap but the North Stand was state of the art at the time.

It was state of the art but was nothing like the stand it should of been. I believe that people were jailed due to financial irregularities surrounding its construction.

They didn't go to prison but there were a couple of fraud convictions. There was nothing wrong with the stand, it was the best in the country at the time, it just cost more than it should have done.

I knew something dodgy went on. The space is there to do something special at that end. It's long overdue.

[Risso]

Both Witton and Trinity were built on the cheap? They certainly look that way. Trinity facade has got better in recent years, but when it was first built it looked awful.

The Witton was definitely done as cheaply as it could have been. Trinity wasn't that bad but a comparatively small amount extra could have made it spectacular.

The Witton was terrible. Sat in there a few times after it was just built, and if you were 6' plus, you literally couldn't get your legs in because the seats were crammed in so badly.

[Ads]

The Witton is the worst stand in the ground.

The Holte End is magnificent. The new Trinity lacks the charm of the old one, but its taken 20 years, it's now looking a lot more impressive and with 3 tiers, she is a big old imposing beast. The North is uuugly! But its unique and was something in its day.

The Witton is an absolutely bland two tier non-entity that could be at any ground up or down the land. On balance I think I'd rather knock that down first.

[Towser]

Would be nice if we could purchase Witton Lane again, move the road over again and build the stand to compliment the Trinity. Oh and change its name from its current alias

[dave.woodhall]

Is an increase of capacity of around 8k worth it for what it would cost ?

It absolutely is. We have always had a top stadium. We currently have 2 stands which are nowhere near that standard. Penny pinching on the Witton lane stand and financial skullduggery on the North Stand are the reasons behind the current state of affairs. 2 brand spanking new state of the art stands would put Villa Park back in it's rightful place as one of England's finest stadiums.

Witton Lane was built on the cheap but the North Stand was state of the art at the time.

It was state of the art but was nothing like the stand it should of been. I believe that people were jailed due to financial irregularities surrounding its construction.

They didn't go to prison but there were a couple of fraud convictions. There was nothing wrong with the stand, it was the best in the country at the time, it just cost more than it should have done.

I knew something dodgy went on. The space is there to do something special at that end. It's long overdue.

One of the big problems with that space is car parking, both in terms of capacity and revenue.

[Villan82]

The North Stand needs to go and should be first to go. Put capacity aside for a minute, the facilities in there are horrific. It doesn't feel safe in the concourse. It is dark, it is cramped. It is just awful. I know it was a great stand in its day but like a lot of builds of that era it has not stood the test of time. If we are honest the late 1970s built North Stand already looked dated by the early 2000s whereas the stands built in the 1990s still look impressive.

I know the Witton Lane stand is quite mundane but it is not as urgent as the North Stand. Also, I think the Witton Lane stand looks quite OK from outside.

[dave.woodhall]

The North Stand needs to go and should be first to go. Put capacity aside for a minute, the facilities in there are horrific. It doesn't feel safe in the concourse. It is dark, it is cramped. It is just awful. I know it was a great stand in its day but like a lot of builds of that era it has not stood the test of time. If we are honest the late 1970s built North Stand already looked dated by the early 2000s whereas the stands built in the 1990s still look impressive.

I know the Witton Lane stand is quite mundane but it is not as urgent as the North Stand. Also, I think the Witton Lane stand looks quite OK from outside.

Apart from the graffiti on the sides.

[paul_e]

One of the big problems with that space is car parking, both in terms of capacity and revenue.

With the shop and the academy/stumps there's a lot of space that could be better used along there.

[dave.woodhall]

One of the big problems with that space is car parking, both in terms of capacity and revenue.

With the shop and the academy/stumps there's a lot of space that could be better used along there.

That's not really much extra space given that even a stand with the same capacity as the current one would have to be much bigger.

[Concrete Tom]

I’m sure some sort of underground parking could be considered. There appears to be plenty of room to excavate.