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Birmingham City has appointed Mace as construction manager for the ongoing project to upgrade the lower Tilton and Kop stands at the English Championship football club’s St Andrew’s stadium.
Mace, which was already part of the project team, is stepping into the role following the collapse of Buckingham Group into administration.
The club, which is managing the St Andrew’s Master Redevelopment plan, will assume responsibility for the management of all sub-contractors working on the project, which is now expected to be completed before the end of November.
The Lower Tilton safe-standing area will be able to welcome more than 3,000 fans, while the Kop Lower Stand will accommodate an additional 3,600 supporters. Following completion, the stadium’s overall capacity will be nearly 30,000.
“By appointing Mace to the construction management role we have ensured we will be in a position to achieve our goal of having close to 30,000 Blues fans, in person at St Andrew’s, supporting the team later this autumn,” club CEO Garry Cook said.
“Sub-contractors who have worked so hard to get us to this point will now have the opportunity to finish the work they have started. More than 50% of our sub-contractors live in and around Birmingham so it is important that we have been able to get them back to work so quickly.
“I would like to thank the Buckingham Group team members for their commitment and passion to the Birmingham City project. They are professionals who find themselves in a challenging situation. Our hope is that they all find new and rewarding opportunities in the very near future.”
Managing director, property UK and Europe at Mace Consult, Dan Easthope, added: “Over the coming weeks, Mace will be drawing on our global expertise in stadium and venue delivery, working closely with Birmingham City and all of the suppliers currently supporting the project to ensure that the remaining work can continue with the minimum of disruption.
“Although the circumstances are unfortunate, we’re pleased that Birmingham City have put their faith in us. We’re confident that we have the right team in place to deliver the outstanding work in a timely manner and ensure that as many fans as possible will be able to support the club at St Andrew’s this autumn.”
In May, Tom Wagner, co-founder of New York-based Knighthead Capital Management, struck a deal to acquire a stake in Birmingham and assume ownership of St Andrew’s.
A month earlier, the club announced that repair work would be completed during the 2023-24 campaign after sections of St. Andrew’s had been closed for the best part of two seasons due to structural issues.
Image: fitzyt – CC BY 3.0: Edited for size
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