Monday 31st October 2016
DUMBARTON Community Football Stadium Company Ltd are holding a second public exhibition of their proposals for the relocation of Dumbarton Football Club almost two years to the date since the first one.
The exhibition will be held at Dumbarton Football Club, Castle Road, Dumbarton between 11.00 a.m – 7.00 p.m on Friday 11th November 2016 where members of the project team will be on hand to explain the plans and hear any comments.
The plans will also be available for discussion on Saturday 12 November when the Sons host Morton.
The proposals make provision for the relocation of DFC from their existing Castle Road site, to a new site at Young’s Farm to the west of Dumbarton (bounded by the River Leven to east, A82 to north and railway line to west).
The Club’s plans for a new stadium includes:
• A new 4,000 capacity football stadium comprising 3,000 seats and 1,000 terracing that can be delivered in separate phases;
• Related hospitality accommodation and complementary non-football related uses (for example, healthcare/gym/leisure facilities, hotel, conferencing suites, restaurant and offices);
• Dedicated training facilities
• Additional playing pitches for community use and the creation of a community sports hub which will allow the expansion of the Dumbarton Football Club’s youth development programme.
• Car and coach parking
The old proposals were seeking consent for commercial use at Young’s Farm to part fund the development of the new stadium along with proceeds from the sale of Castle Road for residential use.
The new proposal also now includes areas for residential development at Young’s Farm.
Club Director, Ian Wilson, has been leading the project for the last 12 months and having obtained detailed quotations to build the new stadium and proposals from developers to purchase land at both sites realised there was a significant gap in funding.
Ian commented: “The value of Castle Road for residential use is significantly below expectations, and after two years of trying to attract companies to Young’s Farm no commitments for commercial use have been secured.
“The only way the club can fund a new stadium is with residential consent at Young’s Farm, where we have had a great deal of interest from property developers. If we are successful in getting this consent it also means that a new stadium can be progressed without the need to consider ground sharing, as the club can continue playing at Castle Road until a new stadium is ready.
“As well as better facilities for the club the new stadium would provide opportunities for extra income streams that are sorely needed to keep the club playing at the highest level.
“The directors believe that residential consent at Young’s Farm also allows the club to give back to the council via extra community facilities and services at Young’s Farm. In addition, it facilitates the creation of a parkland setting for the Castle and Rock and the delivery of a waterfront walkway linking to Dumbarton town centre, which is a high-profile project being promoted by the council.
“We have also discussed with the council providing a parcel of land at Young’s Farm for a Robert the Bruce Park, who apparently resided there as his fame grew.”
Ian added: “We look forward to discussing our plans with our supporters and local residents on the 11th November, before submitting the planning application in 2017.”