Villa Park Redevelopment

[Risso]

I still think that the plan (in the short term at least) is to do absolutely nothing except extort more money from the existing capacity. If they are looking at moving, then Comcast will want a big site that supports multi use like retail, dining, leisure, residential and office space etc. It's the only only way to make any money from a new stadium complex. In that respect, we become a secondary consideration.

[LeeB]

Good post Smithy. We're by the biggest club between London and the North West, and we should be hoovering up neutrals, as the only other clubs in the area are much smaller, provincial nobodies.

On the hoovering up fans in the surrounding area thing. When I was at Uni, I did a placement year, and wrote to Villa to see if they'd take me on for a year to work in their Marketing team.  This would have been early '96, so we had quite a good side back then. It was also the VERY early days of the Internet. In my application I pitched the idea of 30-second ads in provincial cinemas as a cheap way to reach new fans.  I'd worked in my own town's cinema during my GCSEs and A Levels, and I'd seen the crappy ads for local restaurants and the like, and how cheap it could be, so I knew if we could create a compelling 30-second video, it would definitely work and we could drive potential new fans to check out our new 'website'.  I never heard back from anyone...

So instead you started up a satirical website. Well nobody's laughing now! (With apologies to Bob Monkhouse)

Oh, that came MUCH later :-)  First I joined an big IT company and worked as a gopher on a bid for a massive PFI IT project for the Post Office.  I wonder whatever became of that...

Who knoes, but I'm sure the technology involved improved everyone's lives immeasureably.

[jon collett]

I had to do that when we played at Blackburn in 93 when we were going for the League.

Missed the last train to Manchester where I was studying. Tried to wait at Blackburn station for the earliest train but they made me move on a goods train to Preston. Then took the milk train to Manchester.

All this after a 3-0 defeat which effectively ended our challenge and in the middle of my Finals.

[VillaTim]

Both the Jets and the Giants play in the Metlife, which is 5 miles west of Manhattan. Nothing really to do with franchising, it’s just because there’s more space there. 

They don't play in the state they're from. It would be like us moving to Sandwell, which is only 4 miles from Villa Park, because there is more space.

8 miles move to the NEC / HS2 Interchange where there is loads of space , great motorway connections , HS2 (40 mins to central London) and an airport.
Whether we like or not that location must be on their radar as a serious option to look at

[chrisw1]

Good post Smithy. We're by the biggest club between London and the North West, and we should be hoovering up neutrals, as the only other clubs in the area are much smaller, provincial nobodies.

On the hoovering up fans in the surrounding area thing. When I was at Uni, I did a placement year, and wrote to Villa to see if they'd take me on for a year to work in their Marketing team.  This would have been early '96, so we had quite a good side back then. It was also the VERY early days of the Internet. In my application I pitched the idea of 30-second ads in provincial cinemas as a cheap way to reach new fans.  I'd worked in my own town's cinema during my GCSEs and A Levels, and I'd seen the crappy ads for local restaurants and the like, and how cheap it could be, so I knew if we could create a compelling 30-second video, it would definitely work and we could drive potential new fans to check out our new 'website'.  I never heard back from anyone...

So instead you started up a satirical website. Well nobody's laughing now! (With apologies to Bob Monkhouse)

Oh, that came MUCH later :-)  First I joined an big IT company and worked as a gopher on a bid for a massive PFI IT project for the Post Office.  I wonder whatever became of that...

Who knoes, but I'm sure the technology involved improved everyone's lives immeasureably.

Self fixing accounts whilst you sleep.  What could be better?

[pauliewalnuts]

Both the Jets and the Giants play in the Metlife, which is 5 miles west of Manhattan. Nothing really to do with franchising, it’s just because there’s more space there. 

They don't play in the state they're from. It would be like us moving to Sandwell, which is only 4 miles from Villa Park, because there is more space.

8 miles move to the NEC / HS2 Interchange where there is loads of space , great motorway connections , HS2 (40 mins to central London) and an airport.
Whether we like or not that location must be on their radar as a serious option to look at

That would kill the club, effectively. That area is a fucking desert and still will be with HS2 there. The traffic around there is also utterly horrendous when anything even remotely big is on at the NEC.

[The Edge]

Both the Jets and the Giants play in the Metlife, which is 5 miles west of Manhattan. Nothing really to do with franchising, it’s just because there’s more space there. 

They don't play in the state they're from. It would be like us moving to Sandwell, which is only 4 miles from Villa Park, because there is more space.

8 miles move to the NEC / HS2 Interchange where there is loads of space , great motorway connections , HS2 (40 mins to central London) and an airport.
Whether we like or not that location must be on their radar as a serious option to look at

NO NO NO FUCKING NO.

[dave.woodhall]

I swear some people think the area round the NEC is some sort of Tardis where the smallest bit of land is big enough to hold a football ground and everything for miles around is five minutes walk away. 

[VillaTim]

Both the Jets and the Giants play in the Metlife, which is 5 miles west of Manhattan. Nothing really to do with franchising, it’s just because there’s more space there. 

They don't play in the state they're from. It would be like us moving to Sandwell, which is only 4 miles from Villa Park, because there is more space.

8 miles move to the NEC / HS2 Interchange where there is loads of space , great motorway connections , HS2 (40 mins to central London) and an airport.
Whether we like or not that location must be on their radar as a serious option to look at

That would kill the club, effectively. That area is a fucking desert and still will be with HS2 there. The traffic around there is also utterly horrendous when anything even remotely big is on at the NEC.

you've got Resorts World there now so shops / bars / restaurant casino. There's obviously quite a few hotels around that area / airport too. Not my cup of team would be a bit like Wembley and that outlet shopping centre next to it

[chrisw1]

Both the Jets and the Giants play in the Metlife, which is 5 miles west of Manhattan. Nothing really to do with franchising, it’s just because there’s more space there. 

They don't play in the state they're from. It would be like us moving to Sandwell, which is only 4 miles from Villa Park, because there is more space.

8 miles move to the NEC / HS2 Interchange where there is loads of space , great motorway connections , HS2 (40 mins to central London) and an airport.
Whether we like or not that location must be on their radar as a serious option to look at

40 mins would be a game-changer for attracting tourist fans.  I can imagine posters on the underground advertising match tickets.

I'd absolutely hate being out there though and I'm not sure there's spare land anyway.

[London Villan]

Plenty of spare land at the NEC as they don't need the massive surface car park. Like has happened with the Arden Cross plans they did away with massive surface car parks and replaced them with a couple of big multi-storeys.

But I don't think the NEC is a viable option for us from an historic location point of view. Logistically though with two big mainline stations, the motorway connections and the Metro I can see what it might be attractive for a 60-70k seater stadium...

[Exeter 77]

Just an idle thought. What will happen with the compulsorily purchased land which will no longer be required now the northern bit of HS2 has been cancelled?

[Ads]

Fantastic, a stadium in Marston fucking Green sandwiched in-between an exhibition hall and the M42, built on a sliver of car park. Absolutely dire to get to, limited public transport and a minimum of 19 days of carnage. Fuck no and anybody suggesting it is on crack.

[London Villan]

Just an idle thought. What will happen with the compulsorily purchased land which will no longer be required now the northern bit of HS2 has been cancelled?

It's a bit further north than we need!

[LeeB]

Fantastic, a stadium in Marston fucking Green sandwiched in-between an exhibition hall and the M42, built on a sliver of car park. Absolutely dire to get to, limited public transport and a minimum of 19 days of carnage. Fuck no and anybody suggesting it is on crack.

I don't live too far away and am a lazy bastard but it's a big no from me.

I'm up for the old DAF site though.