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City Ground expansion finally approved in 'major commitment' from Nottingham Forest

Nottingham Forest have been given final approval for the first step of their ambitious City Ground expansion plans six years after they were first unveiled. Once all conditions have been met, the club can start progressing plans to demolish and rebuild the Peter Taylor Stand in a move that will increase capacity by 5,000.

The Reds have also been given initial approval on plans for a block of up to 170 apartments next to the rebuilt stand, though this is subject to approval of other details they will have to provide to the council. The Reds first unveiled their proposal to expand the ground on the banks of the River Trent back in 2019 and they were given conditional permission in 2022.

Complex negotiations have been taking place since then on issues including the financial contributions Forest will make to the local area and how they will support a rowing club when Forest demolish one of its buildings.

Progress on those negotiations mean that at a crucial Rushcliffe Borough Council planning committee meeting on Thursday night (June 26), councillors voted unanimously to give full planning permission for the Peter Taylor Stand demolition and outline planning permission for the residential apartments.

In a statement the meeting, Nottingham Forest said: "The club is delighted that Rushcliffe Borough Council's planning committee has approved our application regarding the redevelopment of the City Ground.

"We look forward to working closely with our partners on the next steps and will provide a further update in due course."

Success of the Reds has 'shone a light' on need for stadium revamp

Nottingham Forest fans arriving at the City Ground ahead of kick-off against Sheffield United on Tuesday (May 17)

The first stage of Forest's stadium expansion will see the Peter Taylor Stand demolished (Image: Joseph Raynor/Nottingham Post)

Forest's legal representative at Thursday's meeting confirmed that this will merely be the "first step" in the evolution of the City Ground. Chris Potts said the club's success since being promoted to the Premier League has "shone a light" on the need for improvements at the City Ground, telling the planning committee: "The Peter Taylor Stand has witnessed some incredible moments, but it's the obvious part of the stadium to look to expand.

"A new stand of 10,000 spectators will be modern, it'll be inclusive, it'll work incredibly well on match days. The delivery of a new stand will be transformational for the area and will represent the first step in the City Ground's evolution."

Mr Potts also told the planning committee that they should not underestimate the challenge Forest is taking on by expanding the stadium. He said: "It's incredibly expensive, the timetabling is incredibly tight and of course when you do redevelop, you remove a stand, so you reduce capacity and income. Undertaking this is a major commitment."

Rushcliffe planning officer Charlotte Thompson said Forest is "integral to the tourism and visitor offer of the borough and greater Nottingham as a whole." The officer said the development would boost the local economy by £13 million a year and would create 264 jobs.

Forest's broader plans include improving and, in the case of the Bridgford Stand, extending the other three sides of the ground. The overall masterplan aims to get stadium capacity from just short of 30,000 up to 40,000.

The key stumbling block before work begins

A general view of the Nottingham Britannia Rowing Club in Trentside North, near The City Ground

The Britannia Boathouse would have to be demolished (Image: Joseph Raynor/Nottingham Post)

The key stumbling block now for work getting underway will be finding a replacement facility for the Britannia Boathouse, owned by the Nottingham Rowing Club. The site currently stands in the way of access to the planned plaza between the new Peter Taylor Stand and the block of residential apartments - which was also given full planning permission on Thursday night.

The site would therefore have to be demolished, something Charlotte Thompson said needed to be "carefully considered". Yet the planning officer said the benefits of Forest's scheme would "clearly outweigh" the loss of the boathouse and that a replacement facility would have to be secured before the existing one is demolished - though the new facility would have to form part of a separate planning application.

Outline planning permission for the block of apartments means that although Rushcliffe has given approval in principal, Forest still needs to come back to the planning committee with details on the landscaping and appearance of the block. Details already confirmed for the apartment block so far include its L-shaped layout and that its maximum height will be 40 metres.

Concern over 'snarled up' West Bridgford

Traffic on Trent Bridge after a Nottingham Forest game in 2023 (Image: Nottingham Post)

The Peter Taylor Stand replacement will be the tallest one at the City Ground and one of the planning officers present on Thursday night acknowledged it would also cause a "significant loss" of car parking spaces. The current 171 spaces at the front of the stand would be reduced to just 35, a net loss of 136 car parking spaces.

This led to concerns being expressed about the area around the City Ground becoming a "snarled up area full of irate residents and commuters."

The Green Party's Councillor Sue Mallender, who represents the Lady Bay ward on Rushcliffe Borough Council, said: "The residents of Lady Bay ward suffer every time there is a match. Now, not only do we have the increase in capacity of the stand bringing even more traffic, we also have a development of 170 units with a net loss of 136 car parking spaces.

"What we need in order for this development to be acceptable is a proper transport plan that really does encourage people to use active travel or public transport. We suffer from severe congestion, from parking on pavements, from parking illegally on double yellow lines.

"We have poor air quality, our buses cannot get through on many occasions. We want additional work to be done on that travel plan."

Nottingham Forest's transport assessment concludes that all its development work, coupled with the loss of car parking, will create demand for an additional 1,416 spaces. The club says that for "major events, attendees are typically willing to walk longer distances."

Yet the club is also considering measures including a map of walking routes and public transport modes being printed on the back of tickets. The club also says it will consider temporary road closures at the end of matches to ensure pedestrian safety, particularly on Lady Bay Bridge.

Forest are also considering schemes for staff including bus taster tickets and car club schemes.

Labour's Councillor Steve Calvert said it seemed as if the council was relying on a "wing and a prayer" in terms of the impact of Forest's development being mitigated.

Reacting to the approval, Green Party borough councillor for Lady Bay, Councillor Richard Mallender, told Nottinghamshire Live: "I think in a nutshell, all the stuff sounds fine on paper. The reality is, West Bridgford is getting completely snarled up when there are matches.

"It isn't just Forest, it does happen with some of the bigger international cricket games and with some of the rugby games. The rugby people have been really good and have really worked with the community on this, but Forest aren't and it's a real problem."

Councillor Sue Mallender, also a Green Party councillor for Lady Bay, added: "The cricket have been quite good with the community in that they take over various fields to be used for parking. We want to see Forest doing the same and then we can all be happy."

Rushcliffe leader 'delighted' that plans approved

Councillor Neil Clarke, Rushcliffe Borough Council's leader

Councillor Neil Clarke, Rushcliffe Borough Council's leader (Image: Nottingham Post)

One member of the planning committee said traffic and parking problems were the "cost of progress", whilst another dubbed the traffic fears "hypothetical". Rushcliffe's planning officer also noted that the highways authority, Nottinghamshire County Council, did not object to the plans.

Rushcliffe Borough Council's leader, Councillor Neil Clarke, said: "Given the significance of this application, I am delighted the planning committee saw it fit through its independent process to again give the green light to the club to assist with its plans. Forest play such an important role in the community and have such an impact on the local economy.

"We are proud they call Rushcliffe home and it's heartening we can support them further with their aspirations. I am very pleased that this application has now been passed and we look forward to working with them further."

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