English League Two football club Scunthorpe United has been granted planning consent to build a new £30m (€33.4m/$37.7m) stadium.
Permission has been granted almost a year after Scunthorpe submitted the plans for an 11,000-capacity venue that would replace Glanford Park as the North Lincolnshire club’s home. The new stadium would be built on the site of Glanford Park.
Scunthorpe announced yesterday (Wednesday) that a separate application to North Lincolnshire for 160 apartments to be built on the Glanford Park site remains undetermined.
The club noted that the proposal for the stadium development has taken more than three times longer than the government’s 13-week guideline for major applications. Scunthorpe said it has repeatedly requested an explanation for the delay but one has not been forthcoming.
The club had initially planned on developing a new stadium at the centre of the Lincolnshire Lakes but abandoned this project due to a lack of progress and stalled development. Attention has since turned to building a new ground on the site of Glanford Park, which has a capacity of 9,000.
Scunthorpe chairman Peter Swann said: “The delay in developing a new stadium, firstly at the Lincolnshire Lakes and now for a simple redevelopment of our existing ground has cost the club millions.
“The council’s delay has prevented the introduction of new commercial uses that will ensure the club’s financial viability, all of which has been compounded by the council’s lack of explanation as to the reason for this delay. The club are currently in dialogue with their lawyer as to further legal action and are calling for a full investigation into the planning delays and the Lincolnshire Lakes.”
Image: Bill Boadan
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