Villa Park Redevelopment

[algy]

At the risk of being told to put it on a different thread, I think it is remarkable that a new tram line is being promised for their new stadium and we can’t get a platform extension for ours.

It's not for them. It's a line going a lot further, with a stop at the San Giro.

Exactly - it's the line to the airport, and it'd be ridiculous to build it without a stop that's vaguely close to St Andrews.  It's not being built for them, it's a stop that's been planned since 2004.

And the money in any case also includes upgrading Witton.

They're not getting anything that we're not also getting.  Arguably we're getting something more substantial since the tram stop would've been built regardless.

[Tuscans]

Aston Villa Football Club welcomes the release of funding by the government to boost the West Midlands transport network.

This week’s announcement comes as the Club has recently submitted detailed plans for the extension of the North Stand at Villa Park, working with the Council to achieve the statutory target of the application’s determination in August 2025.

In addition to the expansion of the seating capacity, the new, state-of-the-art North Stand will form the centrepiece of the North Grounds redevelopment.

The reimagined plaza behind the North Stand will also see the existing club store improvements being completed this month as well as the opening of the Warehouse, a purpose-built multi-use facility on the site of the existing academy building. This will serve as a Fanzone on matchdays and can be converted into a 3,000-capacity concert venue, as well as functioning as a community space on non-matchdays with plans to open the facility in late December 2025.

The Club’s commitment to the redevelopment of the local area has already seen the construction of the inner-city academy at Brookvale which serves as a base for the Foundation’s and academy’s numerous and varied programmes.

This entire project is underpinned by significant improvements needing to be made to Witton Station, one of the major public transport arteries around Villa Park - improvements that will now be funded.

Nassef Sawiris, Executive Chairman of Aston Villa FC, said: “We are delighted that the much-needed funding has now been committed. Improving Witton Station is a critical aspect of our wider endeavour to improve the matchday experience for all fans visiting Villa Park. We are also excited to continue progressing our North Stand extension and to completing the works to the wider Villa Park campus alongside helping to implement the works plan for Witton Station for the benefit of Aston and the surrounding areas.”

Richard Parker, West Midlands Mayor, added: “I promised to secure the funding for Witton Station and this new investment means we can deliver improvements to the station for both Aston Villa and the wider community. We're now working with partners to ensure we have a delivery plan to implement the changes needed ahead of the Euros in 2028.”

[Dogtanian]

Villa welcome funding for Witton Station;

https://www.avfc.co.uk/news/2025/june/06/AVFC-welcomes-funding-into-transport-network/

[Ads]

Noice. Will make the North a breeze (which it will be given the present plan is in the current planning envelope) and also give scope for phase II when thr Witton is done. Could well be at 60k+ by 2030, if we're averaging 50k from 2027 onwards.

I think going 43, 45, 50k makes it more likely by keeping supply fairly narrow.

[LeeB]

I think it's relevant.  Despite the sceptisism it looks like they will build what some thought we should have built.

How successful they become remains to be seen, but I imagine Man U fans laughed at Man City a few years ago.  Obviously pre PSR, but IF they do develop a multi use stadium, it's exactly the additional sort of income that puts such a huge gap between our PSR issues and the likes of Spurs.

I'm glad we're sticking with VP, but honestly I don't think the North stand project is anywhere near ambitious enough, given it is our only opportunity to build a stand unfettered by land constraints.  In fact, I don't think the Purslow design was ambitious enough either.

I agree, the intent and vision stadium wise is what will allow them to move forward at pace if they realise it, and will have them competing on a different financial footing. The North Stand is a plus, but I agree, not ambitious enough. We need to be 60-65k plus a huge amount of significantly better corporate. The only caveat is that Spurs charge London prices, they won't fill a stadium in Birmingham on London prices.

Honestly, struggling to believe this exchange.

Why?

We have the land for one ambitious stand.  We're not utilising it to it's maximum.  Is it that crazy a view to hold that a limited extension is not the best use of the space we have?  A limited extension that will leave us 20-30% behind most the clubs we're hoping to compete against in terms of seats, before even looking at facilities?

But of course anyone questioning the course the club is taking is panicking.  I imagine we're bedwetting too in your mind?

Yes. Yes you are, you great big fanny.

[Ads]

You can see the sheets are piss wet through from here. Really poor behaviour.

Christ, being quoted on Small Heath Alliance, amongst all the wank socks and crayons. Absolute low, pass Chris the Tena Lady now.

[AV82EC]

In the absence of any inkling of a grand new build for us then evolving Villa Park in gradual stages makes sense, 50k inside two years and the potential to then do something with the Witton Lane and the Holte in the coming 5-10 years seems do-able. Whether that gets us to 60k I’m not sure but we’ll be getting up to that sort of level.

[Ads]

In the absence of any inkling of a grand new build for us then evolving Villa Park in gradual stages makes sense, 50k inside two years and the potential to then do something with the Witton Lane and the Holte in the coming 5-10 years seems do-able. Whether that gets us to 60k I’m not sure but we’ll be getting up to that sort of level.

We've not added Aitiros and de facto Comcast to the ownership (and more recently board) of NWSE just to tackle this tricky North re-build.

It's why I sort of hope Man City win this 115 stuff. We have the 3 richest non-State owners by an absolute country mile and while Man City/Newcastle would rip the arse out of it, we'd be able to out spend absolutely everybody else too.

[paul_e]

The important bit about the work we're doing is that we're trying to avoid reducing capacity for long stretches. Any perceived cutting back on the potential of the stand needs to be considered in that perspective.

To get to 53-54k in this development you'd need to wrap around and join onto the Trinity and DE and replace huge sections of the roof on each side, all of which would add a lot more complexity and mean the development would take long and have a much bigger impact whilst it was on-going.

As such it seems like a decent compromise to me, especially if they're doing the work in a way that prepares for further development at that end going forward.

For the next phase of development I wonder if they're looking at taking the upper holte over the road on the Trinity side to 'square it up' I reckon were losing a fair amount of seats there.

[Crown Hill]

You can see the sheets are piss wet through from here. Really poor behaviour.

Christ, being quoted on Small Heath Alliance, amongst all the wank socks and crayons. Absolute low, pass Chris the Tena Lady now.

Was she the one in the Mini with Peter Shilton?

[LeeB]

You can see the sheets are piss wet through from here. Really poor behaviour.

Christ, being quoted on Small Heath Alliance, amongst all the wank socks and crayons. Absolute low, pass Chris the Tena Lady now.

Was she the one in the Mini with Peter Shilton?

I will never, ever, not be amused by references to that incident.

[dave.woodhall]

You can see the sheets are piss wet through from here. Really poor behaviour.

Christ, being quoted on Small Heath Alliance, amongst all the wank socks and crayons. Absolute low, pass Chris the Tena Lady now.

I don't know. I regard it as one of the highlights of my life.

[Ads]

You can see the sheets are piss wet through from here. Really poor behaviour.

Christ, being quoted on Small Heath Alliance, amongst all the wank socks and crayons. Absolute low, pass Chris the Tena Lady now.

I don't know. I regard it as one of the highlights of my life.

Surely an Albion forum would be better for you?

[chrisw1]

You can see the sheets are piss wet through from here. Really poor behaviour.

Christ, being quoted on Small Heath Alliance, amongst all the wank socks and crayons. Absolute low, pass Chris the Tena Lady now.

Fucking happy clappers.

I seem to recall you were  100% convinced it had be a new stadium and now you laugh at people who think a minor extension is a missed opportunity.

Good luck with you delusion of a new Witton in the next 10 years.

[IFWaters]

I'm a bedwetter as well. While I'm glad no seats will be lost and it will be quick (hopefully) it just all smells a bit Doug Ellis to me. Cheap and not befitting this "Rolls Royce of a football club". They're using some tinged sheeting on the outside of the stairs to make it look like brick but give it a few years and that will have faded.

If we want to permanently establish ourselves as one of the big boys then we have to act like them. It's poor design, not big enough and cheap. Up the Villa.