Green energy businessman Dale Vince has dropped his plans for a £100m (€117.1m/$123.9m) business park development in Stroud, England, to focus solely on building a new football stadium.
Vince, who is the owner of English League Two club Forest Green Rovers and owner of Ecotricity, said he wants to concentrate on building the new ground for his team after facing obstacles with approval.
The decision, he said, was taken because of “ongoing delays with the planning process”.
“It’s a pragmatic decision, recognising that Eco Park as proposed was just a bit too much for the council to get their heads round right now,” he said, according to the BBC.
“The stadium is the most important part in the short term – the thing we need the most, and the easiest thing for planners to approve – so we’re removing the obstacles.”
Here’s the view from the centre-spot at our proposed new stadium – designed by @ZHA_News pic.twitter.com/I4z19BtGzP
— Forest Green Rovers (@FGRFC_Official) November 3, 2016
While neither the business park, which could have employed more than 4,000 people, or the stadium have gained planning permission, the designs and feasibility of the football ground are further advanced.
Local villages voiced opposition for the construction plans over issues such as increased congestion, though the business park plan may be revisited in the future, according to Vince.
Forest Green has played homes games at The New Lawn since 2006.
Images: Zaha Hadid Architects
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