Manchester United’s new stadium plans have hit a roadblock after the owner of land the club was hoping to acquire found a 1,000% boost in the value of its freight terminal.
United plan to start work on building a new stadium as part of £4.2bn regeneration plans for the Old Trafford area, with a ‘tented’ 100,000-seat stadium, including designs by renowned architect practice Foster + Partners, as the centrepiece. Co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe has dubbed the stadium ‘the Wembley of the North’.
But the proposals face potential delays due to a stand by logistics company, Freightliner, which operates a rail freight depot on land next to Old Trafford which has been identified for acquisition as part of the wider regeneration programme.
The Guardian reports that Freightliner has slapped a £400m valuation on the land, which is somewhat higher than the £40-£50m United is willing to offer, and significantly more than the £4 City fans claim it is worth.
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An alternative site in St Helens has been identified for a new Freightliner depot, but the logistics operator is said to be keen to realise a premium return for its land.
The Guardian claims talks between the two parties are deadlocked, with Freightliner sticking with its valuation and a source claiming they “have United over a barrel”.
When Ratcliffe unveiled his plans in March this year he outlined an ambitious five-year build programme. The club had hoped to commence preparatory work by the end of this year, but it has not yet secured the necessary land or formally appointed an architect, and is still to apply for planning permission.
Ratcliffe has estimated a £4.2bn cost for the whole scheme, including more than £2bn to build the ground. He suggested using the Manchester Ship Canal to transport materials to the site in a bid to reduce costs.
United claim the wider regeneration proposals would generate £7.3bn a year for the UK economy, create 92,000 jobs and more than 17,000 new homes as well as attracting an extra 1.8 million visitors annually.
One option to overcome Freightliner’s land valuation could be to issue a compulsory purchase order, through the new Old Trafford Mayoral Development Corporation chaired by Sebastian Coe, but that would inevitably lead to legal challenges and further delays.
United held a Fans’ Forum event in June where it admitted securing land could hamper preparatory work beginning this year. An official club statement said: “Planning work is continuing, including the consultations with fans discussed during today’s meeting.
“Discussions are also ongoing with local authorities, land owners and potential funding partners with a view to securing the land and the finance we need to proceed with the project.
“It remains our ambition to proceed with the project as quickly as possible, but we can only do this once the necessary land and funding is in place.”