Villa Park Redevelopment

[VILLA MOLE]

https://www.theguardian.com/football/2016/may/19/tony-xia-revamp-aston-villa-top-three-world-owner

Well that sent me chills on a very hot day

[Percy McCarthy]

I can’t find it now (might have been another thread) but there was a recent post detailing exchanges between the club & FAB in which the club said the 1888 seats were being returned to zone 1 status. Can someone tell me where those seats are and if they were corporate before?

[Dogtanian]

I think they're middle-centre Trinity and came with padded seats.

[Drummond]

Ribena's fine, but it's no Vimto. It's like comparing mojitos to caipirinhas, one of them just has a bit more oomph.

What about a margarita and a caipirinha?

[Drummond]

I mean a caipirinha at 2am on the beachfront at Copacabana takes some beating.

[VILLA MOLE]

I prefer Ribena if it's squash.

If it's premixed cans/bottles, Vimto all the way.

Ribena has an after taste that I am not sure about

[Virgil Caine]

I can’t find it now (might have been another thread) but there was a recent post detailing exchanges between the club & FAB in which the club said the 1888 seats were being returned to zone 1 status. Can someone tell me where those seats are and if they were corporate before?

They were middle Trinity and I believe made up of most of block B3. They were not corporate and priced at the very top end of the pricing schedule. When the padded seats were included (and a Villa tie! ) we knew that our time there was going to be short lived. We ( myself and my 2 now adult children) have been shifted along to what was B2 but still at Zone 1 prices with the exception of mine as I get a discount for being a crumbley- the old B3 area did not attract any concessions. Not unhappy about it as we knew it was coming but I'll miss the very comfortable padded seat for sure.

[Percy McCarthy]

^^ Thanks folks.

[chrisw1]

Right, I have a mate in the old 1888 seats and it's just be recategorised back to Z1.  I don't think he's been shifted.  It will be a bit churlish if the club have removed the padded seat!

[Dogtanian]

Right, I have a mate in the old 1888 seats and it's just be recategorised back to Z1.  I don't think he's been shifted.  It will be a bit churlish if the club have removed the padded seat!

Are they replacing all the seats with smaller ones to cram more people in, though?

In which case, I can imagine he’s gonna have to bring a cushion if he has a sensitive bottom.

[chrisw1]

Right, I have a mate in the old 1888 seats and it's just be recategorised back to Z1.  I don't think he's been shifted.  It will be a bit churlish if the club have removed the padded seat!

Are they replacing all the seats with smaller ones to cram more people in, though?

In which case, I can imagine he’s gonna have to bring a cushion if he has a sensitive bottom.

Nah, they never rejigged them in the first place.  They changed a small block of standard seats to padded, sent the ST holders a tie and increased their prices by c20%.  They're just reversing the daft moneygrab.

[PeterWithesShin]

[Chris Harte]

Sort of related to the redevelopment, but isn't it time that such an historic football club had it's own permanent museum on site?

Apologies if this has been explained or covered elsewhere but it just strikes me as odd, especially as the club should be looking for additional income revenues.

I've mentioned an Aston Villa hotel as well previously but I won't chunter on about that right now.

[Percy McCarthy]

Sort of related to the redevelopment, but isn't it time that such an historic football club had it's own permanent museum on site?

Apologies if this has been explained or covered elsewhere but it just strikes me as odd, especially as the club should be looking for additional income revenues.

I've mentioned an Aston Villa hotel as well previously but I won't chunter on about that right now.

Probably the best thing to do would be to have a Museum club with lots of memorabilia that could be used to fleece corporate types on matchday, then be a highlight of the stadium tour, which is #1 on ‘things to do in Birmingham’ on Tripadvisor.

There is support for a high quality hotel on the allocated sites* outlined in the local growth plan published by the council. The Holte & Aston hotels also have potential. We sought planning permission to build one at the Holte End under Ellis, while the Aston Hotel has the advantage of having the Victorian hall next door that one might imagine could be part of such a scheme.

The Aston Inn and Aston Tavern already offer rooms, not sure about the Witton Arms.

*Allocated sites include that area that includes Legia Warsaw car-park, the Villa Chippy, the car-washes and the Majestic down to Witton Station. There are other allocated sites in the growth zone (other side of the Tame, Westwood Park etc. but that’s the area in which the hotel is suggested.

Apologies in advance (re:X) but it’s the only link I’ve got; these are the unrealised hotel plans:

https://x.com/primetimeperry/status/1983611383972528539?s=46&t=GdM6cpVxe5IloByNCRheWA

[Chris Harte]

No problem with the Twitter link. I've seen that before recently (excellent account, BTW).

The Legia car park would indeed make sense for a hotel. It would boost local job opportunities, and in combination with a museum and stadium tour, it would boost revenues. It might not generate a lot in the grand scheme of things but I'm thinking more incremental gains and also turning the area around Villa Park into a seven-days-a-week earner for the club. The Warehouse is clearly part of this idea, but I just think they can be doing more. It could be that they are doing more, but the plans haven't been announced yet.

Edit: With a hotel (complete with fully cooked breakfast in the Nigel Callaghan Grill!), Warehouse on event nights, a musuem, the stadium tour, Aston Hall, access to town via an upgraded Witton Station not to mention the small matter of football matches, if all of this was realised then there would be so much potential within B6.