Featured image credit: Bradley Rial
Plans to redevelop the MKM Stadium, home of Championship football club Hull City and rugby league team Hull FC, are set to be submitted later this year following a meeting with the local council, which owns the venue.
Hull City Council leader Mike Ross met with Hull City executive vice-chairman Tan Kesler, Hull FC chairman Adam Pearson and the SuperStadium Management Company (SMC), which operates the stadium.
The meeting focused on plans for the stadium, which has a capacity of over 25,000 and opened in December 2002. Provisional proposals have been outlined to move Hull City’s academy to the MKM Stadium, and provide improved facilities for the club’s Tigers Trust charity.
The plans, which have been shared with the council’s planning committee as part of a pre-planning application process, also include improved community facilities in nearby West Park.
The two clubs, Tigers Trust and the SMC will now engage with locals and other stakeholders in advance of submitting a detailed planning application later in the year.
Ross said: “It was good to meet with SMC and see the progress it has made on the proposals and discuss any support needed from the council. There would be wider benefits for the community and the professional clubs and it was great to be able to hear about those.”
Kesler added: “I’d like to thank Cllr Ross and his colleagues for their interest and support for our vision for the future of the MKM Stadium and surrounding area.
“Additionally, I’d like to thank Adam and also our colleagues at the Tigers Trust for their efforts and enthusiasm for a project that will bring benefits to so many people. We look forward to sharing our plans with the people of Hull in due course.”
Hull City was bought by Turkish businessman Acun Ilicali in January 2022. Since the takeover, Ilicali and Kesler have expressed a wish to develop the land around the MKM Stadium.
Ilicali is keen to build a new academy and training complex next to the stadium site. The club’s training ground is currently located in the village of Cottingham, while the academy is based at Bishop Burton College.
The club’s plans to expand the area around the MKM Stadium are complicated by Hull Fair, a week-long event which takes place every October in the car park next to the stadium.
Earlier this month, Kesler expressed frustration at the lack of progress for the club’s plans. Speaking at a podcast event hosted by local news outlet Hull Live, Kesler called on the council to move forward with discussions and also mentioned the fair as an obstacle.
Following Kesler’s comments, Ross said that he would be willing to meet with the club to discuss the plans in more detail. The meeting this week appears to have been productive and more detailed plans are now set to be drawn up.
Hull City is currently sixth in the Championship and welcomes West Bromwich Albion to the MKM Stadium on Saturday.
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