Coventry City’s new stadium has been expanded to include banqueting facilities, will now cost £172 million and will not be ready for football until the 2003/4 season.

HOW IT SHOULD LOOK ONCE IT IS BUILT, AND WHAT THE SITE LOOKED LIKE AT THE BEGINNING BELOW

The NEC Group, which runs the Birmingham NEC, is to be involved with the scheme and has increased the range of facilities to include conferencing, banqueting, exhibitions, concerts and large scale entertainment.

It had been feared that the group would instead build their own stadium near the current NEC.

Mindful of the potential for the costs of the project to get out of control, in the same way that the Millennium Dome and Wembley Stadium developments have, bosses have warned they are taking their time before any work will start.

Around £10 million has already been spent on de-contaminating the land on the former Foleshill gasworks site.

The total cost is now expected to be £172 million, of which £60 million will be spent on the arena itself.

Project director Stuart Guest said a great deal of attention has been paid to the technical details to make sure that the scheme is what the club needs and can afford.

In a statement issued today he repeats that the club “cannot afford” to get it wrong.

The result has been that the club now knows that it can have a multi-purpose stadium with a retractable pitch and roof built they way it wants.

The plan is for it to be used all year for a variety of sporting events and entertainment.

Delays so far have encountered have included finding a new home for the Hodgkins family, who have lived by one of the gas-holders for years. They are being moved and the final gas-holder will be blown up in May 2001.

There have also been some problems with getting the land required for the project. But Coventry City Council, which is backing the scheme has pledged to use its powers to issue compulsory purchase orders should there be any obstructions.

Work on building the arena is expected to start next summer, and be ready in time for the 2003/4 season.

Mr Guest said:

“The problems of balancing architectural dreams with the reality of building costs, commercial returns and funding are well known.

“The Millennium Dome and the proposed new Wembley Stadium are two recent examples of how large and complex building projects can spiral out of control without firm and realistic planning and project management.

“Arena 2001 is a complex and very expensive project - it is unique in Britain and we need to get it right before we can safely start on the building work.

“Because the arena is unique we must be able to agree with the builders a maximum fixed price contract for the Arena.

“With all the other important developments going on in the north of Coventry, the Arena in the Heart of England project must be successful - we cannot afford to get it wrong.  The financial and regeneration implications are too important.

“Such an important exercise is of course time consuming and this is particularly frustrating when set against the great enthusiasm that exists in Coventry for the project to be built.

 “What we are doing in Coventry is unique and will significantly change the image of Coventry and the West Midlands for the future. Be assured that there is an enormous energy and activity going on to drive the project forward.

“We know what needs to be done and we are doing it.

Barry Claverdon, Chief Executive of The NEC Group said today:

"We are delighted to be working very closely with the Arena 2000 team to ensure that our extensive venue management experience helps to develop and operate a sports and business facility that will become a venue of national importance."

SEE [15 DEC 00] COVENTRY CITY ARENA STATEMENT IN FULL
SEE [15 DEC 00] COMMENT HOLD YOUR BREATH FOR NEW STADIUM 
SEE [07 DEC 00] SKY BLUES STADIUM FACES NEW THREAT