Millwall is set to stay at The Den after plans to redevelop land around the English League One football club’s stadium were all but abandoned.
The club had faced a compulsory purchase order (CPO), under which Lewisham Council planned to seize land owned by Millwall and sell it to offshore-registered developer Renewal.
If the project had gone ahead, it was likely that Millwall would have had to leave The Den, its home since 1993, and find a new stadium.
However, Lewisham Mayor Sir Steve Bullock said yesterday (Wednesday) that the planned £1bn (€1.2bn/$1.3bn) regeneration scheme “should not proceed”. The council is yet to make a formal decision on the matter.
In a statement on its website, Millwall said that it welcomed the comments from Mayor Bullock and hoped the council would make a formal decision on the matter soon.
“Today’s statements are not formal announcements by Lewisham Council,” the statement said. “They are expressions of views by the individuals concerned. We hope that they will become formal council policy, but until the council makes its position unambiguously clear, we cannot be sure.
“The Mayor chose to become a member of the board of the Surrey Canal Sports Foundation and, as he has made clear, has no powers nor involvement in the CPO decision.
“Therefore, we call on the council as a matter of urgency to make a formal announcement and to confirm that the CPO process has not just been suspended but formally withdrawn, removing the threat that has hung over all involved since 2012.”
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