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Potential stadium move

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Not a lot of detail, but it’s early days. However, all the key stakeholders are behind it. PP is too expensive to run and difficult to develop. The club is desperate to find a site which will generate more non-matchday income. WMBC would love to get their hands on the PP site for housing. The site is in the near perfect location and is available.

I hope the feasibility study is thorough and objective. If it funds in favour, I can’t see anything stopping the move. I’m a nostalgic romantic, but the sustainable future of the club could depend on a move.
 
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If it is feasible, I am fully in favour of a move. Prenton Park is unrecognisable from the ground I first attended as a kid, so strangely enough my sentimental attachment to the ground is not that great. We would create new memories at the new ground.

I have seen some suggestions that attendances would fall at Bidston, but I am not convinced. I think our support base is fairly well spread across the Wirral these days, although it would be interesting to see a demographic analysis of where our season ticket holders are actually based. Some have suggested they are concentrated in the south of the town and in areas like Port Sunlight and Bromborough, but I would guess we have as many fans in Oxton or Woodchurch.
 

ALDO MUSSY

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I have to agree with PP we all love it but in the long run, it is just not sustainable the move will happen but in the long run, looking at 100m is a load of money they are going to need some backing to get this done
 

Boz

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The proposed new location is a soulless out of town venue. What steps will be taken to avoid the flat-pack stadiums of the likes of Walsall/Shrewsbury? I am not convinced and while the stakeholders seem hellbent on pushing this through they need to be addressing such concerns
 
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The amount of investment being talked about in regenerating the area would, by definition, transform it from its current soulless, desolate state. The stadium sounds like it’d be just one component of that regeneration, but also an accelerator of it.

I’d agree that getting the surrounding infrastructure right - including, but not only, road/transport links - will be very important.
 
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One notable comment from my manager when she visited PP when we played Chester in the National League was how impressed she was with the location and how it felt part of the community, unlike their own “soulless” ground. I guess there’s a risk this sense of community, in its’ current form, may be lost to a significant degree if/when we move to a more commercial location.
Rotherham’s new ground has been muted as a good model; impressive ground when I visited last time we played them, but a bit of a corporate, identi-kit and clinical feel with no specific unique character for any romantics amongst us. The other aspect in relation to Rotherham is that the new ground is literally a stone’s throw (for someone with a relatively strong arm) from the old ground so probably an easier sell for them to the fans. The reality is that we live in a progressive world and need to avoid the risk of stagnation (we have been making good strides in recent years to avoid this). I’d love to stay at PP and that would be my desired option, but that’s heart ruling head. Memories aren’t just about the football, it’s about family and special bonds created between parents and their children. As my youngest son gradually approaches adulthood and independence, it’s going to be hard to replicate the memories of his formative years if we do move, but I’m sure we’ll still have many a conversation about the good old days and how PP was a fortress (conveniently forgetting some less memorable occasions; Welling United as an example amongst many!). We’ll all have our own treasured memories of the place and it’s not a gimme yet that we’ll move so let’s create some more in the meantime.
I’m just wondering if they’ll sell us our own seats before demolition, if it comes to that; a couple of old, folding and faded blue seats surely wouldn’t look too amiss in the garden to enjoy a drink and a reminisce on, with a piece of the PP turf embedded into the lawn to add further fuel for dewy-eyed conversation.
 
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The proposed new location is a soulless out of town venue. What steps will be taken to avoid the flat-pack stadiums of the likes of Walsall/Shrewsbury? I am not convinced and while the stakeholders seem hellbent on pushing this through they need to be addressing such concerns
The owners have specifically said that an innovative design is the intention, such as Rotherham's ground, rather than a low cost breeze block affair.

Being situated directly next to a Merseyrail station and junction one of the M53, the proposed site would be much easier for exiled supporters to access.
 

Ian

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I think with a new ground you will always lose a bit of the old charm but I think a lot of it with supporters is clinging onto old memories and not wanting to change. Nothing lasts forever and if we need to move on to progress then so be it. We are ultimately there to watch the team so the core base will still be there and after a season or two we'll all be used to the new surroundings.
 
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I think with a new ground you will always lose a bit of the old charm but I think a lot of it with supporters is clinging onto old memories and not wanting to change. Nothing lasts forever and if we need to move on to progress then so be it. We are ultimately there to watch the team so the core base will still be there and after a season or two we'll all be used to the new surroundings.
My West Ham mate has quickly forgot the many seasons of mediocrity at the Boleyn Ground
 
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I think the offical club statment may have been more reactice than proactive! :lol: :laugh:
 
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The proposed new location is a soulless out of town venue. What steps will be taken to avoid the flat-pack stadiums of the likes of Walsall/Shrewsbury? I am not convinced and while the stakeholders seem hellbent on pushing this through they need to be addressing such concerns
sorry to disagree BOZ but I thought Shrewsbury's ground was impressive
 

Boz

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sorry to disagree BOZ but I thought Shrewsbury's ground was impressive
Suppose it’s all a matter of opinion. Gay Meadow was a decent ground in the centre of town, where they are now is a few miles out and relatively isolated. The stadium itself didn’t seem to have any attractive or unusual features.

I’ve not been to Rotherham yet. Of the new build stadia, Swansea is probably the best still being fairly central.
 
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Suppose it’s all a matter of opinion. Gay Meadow was a decent ground in the centre of town, where they are now is a few miles out and relatively isolated. The stadium itself didn’t seem to have any attractive or unusual features.

I’ve not been to Rotherham yet. Of the new build stadia, Swansea is probably the best still being fairly central.
Shrewsbury's new ground is not the most prepossessing, but I think we are proposing a 'closed' design rather than four individual flat-pack stands.

However, Shrewsbury's move has coincided with a significant upturn in performance on the pitch, and they are now established as a League One club.
 

drwhoman

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I think this is an imaginative and necessary proposal. The key will obviously be how the new Rovers ground is integrated into the overall plan. As has been said, it needs to be an attractively designed ground in an appropriate wider development. It should not end up being in a barren waste land or in the middle of an industrial estate! Thus, it will not just be about the planning but how that is translated into reality in a considered and thoughtful way. Fans will not want to be trying to navigate a construction site to get to the ground! From a location perspective, I think that Bidston is fine. Most supporters come from the Wirral and the M53 is pretty close. Even if they come from over the water the new ground would be easily accessible. There is obviously nostalgia for Prenton Park linked to the Club's history and possible family links. However, as has been said, we always have to adapt to change. The blue Birkenhead Corp buses stopped lining up in Prenton Park West to take the fans home, possibly with a parcel of fish and chips, many years ago! The ground is showing its age and must be expensive to maintain. We should credit Mark and Nicola for their forward thinking. The whole development will not be cheap but it is a regeneration exercise. The area has really been in need of this ever since the ore ships stopped coming when the Shotton Steelworks closed. When was that? In Thatcher's time probably.
 

frenchrover

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Without a shadow of a doubt a bit of nostalgia is nice and should be applauded but the reality is that Prenton Park is finacially crippling the club. We have to move on and the proposed development plans signal the ambition of the club and its owners to achieve a higher status in the football league pyramid. This ambition should be welcomed and applauded by all fans who wish to see OUR club not only survive in the future but flourish. At the end of the day we support Tranmere Rovers Football Club and the team that represents it at any one time, on any one pitch be that Prenton Park, Wembley. Villa Park, Goodison or.... Bidston Sports Village.
 

Boz

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However, Shrewsbury's move has coincided with a significant upturn in performance on the pitch, and they are now established as a League One club.
I'm not aware of and would be interested in seeing any analysis of how clubs have fared since moving to a new ground. Can it be shown that Shrewsbury's move to a new ground is directly down to the relocation, are other factors involved or is it a combination of both?

With regard to the proposed Rovers move, there is not enough information out there yet to be able to form definitive judgements and my initial post was simply flagging up some potential concerns.
 
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I'm not aware of and would be interested in seeing any analysis of how clubs have fared since moving to a new ground. Can it be shown that Shrewsbury's move to a new ground is directly down to the relocation, are other factors involved or is it a combination of both?

With regard to the proposed Rovers move, there is not enough information out there yet to be able to form definitive judgements and my initial post was simply flagging up some potential concerns.
I think many clubs, including Rotherham, Doncaster, Swansea, Reading, Huddersfield, Cardiff and Brighton have benefitted from a move. They have not had continuous success by any means, but since moving they have generally operated higher up the pyramid than they did previously.

Scunthorpe and Colchester have also had arguably the most successful periods of their history after moving to new stadiums, albeit they have since gone backwards after being taken over by disreputable owners.

I think the financial benefits of moving are nearly always significant, as demonstrated by the clubs above. More importantly from our perspective, Palios has now been running the club for eight years and if he did not think a move would be greatly advantageous he would not be giving it serious consideration.
 

drwhoman

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I think many clubs, including Rotherham, Doncaster, Swansea, Reading, Huddersfield, Cardiff and Brighton have benefitted from a move. They have not had continuous success by any means, but since moving they have generally operated higher up the pyramid than they did previously.

Scunthorpe and Colchester have also had arguably the most successful periods of their history after moving to new stadiums, albeit they have since gone backwards after being taken over by disreputable owners.

I think the financial benefits of moving are nearly always significant, as demonstrated by the clubs above. More importantly from our perspective, Palios has now been running the club for eight years and if he did not think a move would be greatly advantageous he would not be giving it serious consideration.
I agree RLC. It is hugely advantageous that Mark has a background in accountancy not only in terms of the Club’s current financial position but also in fully understanding the proposed project and its pros and cons for the Club. A detailed risk assessment will be absolutely necessary to ensure that the Club avoids ending up in a hole!
 
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