The Aberdeen Mega-Hyper New Stadium Thread

[PauloPerth]

On 19/08/2021 at 16:21, Merkland Red said:

The demand clearly isn't there though. I know this from sitting inside partially full grounds for years. Big gaps all over the place because people like to sit in certain areas.

IMO 18,000 with the possibility to expand in the future if required is more than enough.

Exactly.  Build it for those who go regularly to experience a >75% full ground and good atmosphere every home game, not for the benefit of a few thousand who'll come once or twice a season to the big games.  Increases interest in ST's as well.

If we were building McDiarmid now I'd only want it about 8000 capacity. (Yes, yes still too big I know).

[Illgresi]

Surely we should be looking at safe standing? A seated capacity of 18000 would be fine with a max capacity of ... 25000 if the standing areas are used.

Also, if the final stadium looks remotely like the architects vision above I may spunk myself to death before I ever get to watch a game there.

[Bully Wee Villa]

18,000 seems a bit pointless. Go for 30,000, then fill it. The Scottish League is never going to break the tedious duopoly if clubs of Aberdeen's size don't show ambition.

Edited November 6, 2021 by Small Bovine Maisonette

[williemillersmoustache]

*Active frontage intensifies*

[Mark Connolly]

9 hours ago, lubo_blaha said:

First team play at the BeachDome, reserves play at the apparently not demolished Pittodrie. Sounds great to me.

If that ever happens, it should be the Sand Siro

[Kyle Reese]

Aberdeen needs rejuvenated. It’s our third biggest city, and it is in dire need of being brought up to spec. 

As far as the football stadium goes though. The last plan that never came to fruition for a > £50m stadium would give me the fear. The funding plan was wishy washy at best. This new plan only goes so far as “could” when mentioning the presence of AFC’s new stadium, in a concept drawing. 

For a while now, I’ve suspected Aberdeen may end up renting a stadium from the council. Some sort of long term agreement and lease. One club city gives them a stronger case for council involvement than most of their rivals, but the council would no doubt want to use the stadium for other purposes too, if they are paying for it.

I expect this plan to change a lot over the next few months.

[Jacksgranda]

8 minutes ago, Kyle Reese said:

Aberdeen needs rejuvenated. It’s our third biggest city, and it is in dire need of being brought up to spec. 

As far as the football stadium goes though. The last plan that never came to fruition for a > £50m stadium would give me the fear. The funding plan was wishy washy at best. This new plan only goes so far as “could” when mentioning the presence of AFC’s new stadium, in a concept drawing. 

For a while now, I’ve suspected Aberdeen may end up renting a stadium from the council. Some sort of long term agreement and lease. One club city gives them a stronger case for council involvement than most of their rivals, but the council would no doubt want to use the stadium for other purposes too, if they are paying for it.

I expect this plan to change a lot over the next few months decades.

There

[vikingTON]

14 minutes ago, Kyle Reese said:

Aberdeen needs rejuvenated. It’s our third biggest city, and it is in dire need of being brought up to spec. 

Aberdeen has uniquely benefited from an offshore oil boom for the past fifty years, while large parts of the Central Belt were systematically deindustrialised and left to rot. If the city's gormless leadership failed to do anything with that windfall then it is not the rest of Scotland's job to tart the place up now. 

[Kyle Reese]

18 minutes ago, virginton said:

Aberdeen has uniquely benefited from an offshore oil boom for the past fifty years, while large parts of the Central Belt were systematically deindustrialised and left to rot. If the city's gormless leadership failed to do anything with that windfall then it is not the rest of Scotland's job to tart the place up now. 

Oil and gas off the coast of Aberdeen must have contributed a fair old whack to the UK’s economy during those times though? The headline figure of £150m isn’t a massive amount, when you consider the amount spent at the shore/Leith in Edinburgh, the trams, the venues and offices on the Clyde or the parliament. Personally, Im all for our cities being the best they can be. Mixed feelings on the football club’s part in that though. 

One thing I find a bit odd though. The headline figure seems to have just been plucked from mid air. The article talks about £20m from UKGov, but as always it’s pretty sketchy about where the rest is going to come from. That’s why I see these plans changing over the next few months (decades as Jack’s grandad probably correctly points out), and being drastically scaled back to match the level of funding available.

 

 

Edited November 6, 2021 by Kyle Reese

[Jacksgranda]

1 minute ago, Kyle Reese said:

Oil and gas off the coast of Aberdeen must have contributed a fair old whack to the UK’s economy during those times though? The headline figure of £150m isn’t a massive amount, when you consider the amount spent at the shore/Leith in Edinburgh, the trams, the venues and offices on the Clyde or the parliament. Personally, Im all for our cities being the best they can be. Mixed feelings on the football club’s part in that though. 

One thing I find a bit odd though. The headline figure seems to have just been plucked from mid air. The article talks about £20 from UKGov, but as always it’s pretty sketchy about where the rest is going to come from. That’s why I see these plans changing over the next few months (decades as Jack’s grandad probably correctly points out), and being drastically scaled back to match the level of funding available.

That wouldn't even get you a Subutteo pitch...

[Kyle Reese]

15 minutes ago, Jacksgranda said:

That wouldn't even get you a Subutteo pitch...

Absolutely. So where is the rest of the cash coming from? I suppose it would depend on how much involvement Cormack has in it? If AFC sold Pittodrie, then they’d have a bit to lob in the pot, but you’re still talking less than half the headline figure.

Take AFC out of the equation, and look at it purely as a city regeneration plan, and £150m is a reasonable figure to expect to be spent. I’d be a bit concerned that if the rest of the money came from the council though, that they would want ownership of any new stadium as part of the plans.

[Guest Bob Mahelp]

1 hour ago, Kyle Reese said:

Aberdeen needs rejuvenated. It’s our third biggest city, and it is in dire need of being brought up to spec. 

As far as the football stadium goes though. The last plan that never came to fruition for a > £50m stadium would give me the fear. The funding plan was wishy washy at best. This new plan only goes so far as “could” when mentioning the presence of AFC’s new stadium, in a concept drawing. 

For a while now, I’ve suspected Aberdeen may end up renting a stadium from the council. Some sort of long term agreement and lease. One club city gives them a stronger case for council involvement than most of their rivals, but the council would no doubt want to use the stadium for other purposes too, if they are paying for it.

I expect this plan to change a lot over the next few months.

Many European clubs either use a local council stadium, or jointly own the stadium with the local council.

I've no problem with Aberdeen going down that path if necessary. 

It won't happen though, because Aberdeen city council have absolutely ZERO ambition or vision. They are, and always have been, small town, conservative nimbys who have in general wasted the legacy of the oil billions. 

 

[Gorgie greatness]

Surely if your too tinpot to deal with 10k  covid passports, then this is simply a  pipe dream.

[vikingTON]

46 minutes ago, Kyle Reese said:

Oil and gas off the coast of Aberdeen must have contributed a fair old whack to the UK’s economy during those times though? 

It also contributed a huge whack to ACC as well as its teuchter fermer counterparts in the surrounding shire, so the onus is on those local authorities to regenerate the city and not the rest of the country to foot that bill. 

As a priority for national regeneration funds it would not be in the top 50 places in Scotland. 

[Jacksgranda]

8 minutes ago, Gorgie greatness said:

Surely if your too tinpot to deal with 10k  covid passports, then this is simply a  pipe dream.

Well, at least we've enough seats...

[Kyle Reese]

3 minutes ago, Bob Mahelp said:

Many European clubs either use a local council stadium, or jointly own the stadium with the local council.

I've no problem with Aberdeen going down that path if necessary. 

It won't happen though, because Aberdeen city council have absolutely ZERO ambition or vision. They are, and always have been, small town, conservative nimbys who have in general wasted the legacy of the oil billions. 

 

Fair enough. I’d be more concerned if that was my club though. There’s UK examples of clubs finding themselves in bother when they don’t own their stadium, I’m sure. Can’t be arsed looking up the fine details, but Coventry and Clyde are two that spring to mind.

I don’t know enough about Aberdeen City Council to comment on what they are like to live with, but if it’s the same Labour and Tory lot who were in the media joining forces to prevent the SNP getting in, and who were sticking up the “Resign Nicola” stuff, then I’m inclined think you are right.

[Sergeant Wilson]

1 minute ago, Kyle Reese said:

Fair enough. I’d be more concerned if that was my club though. There’s UK examples of clubs finding themselves in bother when they don’t own their stadium, I’m sure. Can’t be arsed looking up the fine details, but Coventry and Clyde are two that spring to mind.

I don’t know enough about Aberdeen City Council to comment on what they are like to live with, but if it’s the same Labour and Tory lot who were in the media joining forces to prevent the SNP getting in, and who were sticking up the “Resign Nicola” stuff, then I’m inclined think you are right.

Clyde would've been fine if they hadn't spent the rent money on players.

[Kyle Reese]

4 minutes ago, virginton said:

It also contributed a huge whack to ACC as well as its teuchter fermer counterparts in the surrounding shire, so the onus is on those local authorities to regenerate the city and not the rest of the country to foot that bill. 

As a priority for national regeneration funds it would not be in the top 50 places in Scotland. 

Edinburgh has put a lot of money in to the Scottish economy, and much of it is spent regenerating the places that need it most, often in the west. I’m okay with that though, because I want to see my country be as good as it can be. Surely as the third biggest city, Aberdeen can’t be grudged a centre that reflects its status? £150m is pennies in the grand scheme of things.

[Gorgie greatness]

10 minutes ago, Jacksgranda said:

Well, at least we've enough seats...

Jack yer grunda’s toiling! 
 

predict this thread to disappear into cyber space for ever & ever!

[Guest Bob Mahelp]

10 minutes ago, Kyle Reese said:

Edinburgh has put a lot of money in to the Scottish economy, and much of it is spent regenerating the places that need it most, often in the west. I’m okay with that though, because I want to see my country be as good as it can be. Surely as the third biggest city, Aberdeen can’t be grudged a centre that reflects its status? £150m is pennies in the grand scheme of things.

I tend to agree with all of that, but it's an absolute stone-cold certainty that if ACC proposed spending a 150 million on a redevelopment that included a new stadium for the football club, there would be a massive uproar from those that will scream about the roads/schools/health/pretty much everything and awthing. 

It is pretty much a sad but undeniable fact that despite being a one club city, support for Aberdeen FC from both the local council and many people in the city has always been lukewarm at best. 

Far from being the pride of the city, the football club has long been something on the edge of things that has to be tolerated.

In short, Aberdeen is full of selfish, inward-looking fuckers.