Who remembers the 1980s Waterhall stadium proposal?

[Bish Bosh]

I think not Easy, someone will come along and bale me out sooner or later...it was in the early to mid-80's.

The Kruger brothers rings a bell.

 

[acrossthepond]

Didn't Boothferry park have it's own station?

*cough* Bescot *cough*

Wiki says yes. Also that Old Trafford has one...

Didn't Ninian Park have one too?

 

[Icy Gull]

I remember a flyer that was handed out by the club at one game in the Bellotti era where there was picture of a stadium and some blurb about how it would be built within a couple of years. It was akin to something cut of the back of a box of cereals and really went into no depth at all. Not sure it even told us where the stadium would be and planning permission was taken as read, even though it hadn't even been applied for.

 

[Brovion]

Weren't the pictures in Seagull News for a new Stadium at Toad's Hole? I could be wrong as it was a long time ago.

 

[cardboard]

I have the pics in a programme, i will try to dig them out.

It was 4 separate stands with the "watford style roof" the bumpy looking one
Corners not filled in
Single tier on all stands
Pretty plain looking
A massive car park
That was about it i think

 

[Merseyside Seagull]

I've got the copies of the Argus with all the detail somewhere, I seem to remember it made the front pages, although that might have been the Goldstone redevelopment plans. I'll try and find them when I'm home tonight.

 

[cardboard]

Bolton has its own station

 

[Tony Meolas Loan Spell]

Yes I do.

And I still maintain to this day its the best site for a stadium.

Remember also at the time that the dual carriageway was being built so we could have "piggy backed" off those works with another coulple of cranes etc.

 

[Chicken Run]

I have the pics in a programme, i will try to dig them out.

It was 4 separate stands with the "watford style roof" the bumpy looking one
Corners not filled in
Single tier on all stands
Pretty plain looking
A massive car park
That was about it i think

The design you are describing was the proposal for the toads hole site aka snakey hill, the deawings for waterhall were published in the Argus Cup Final supplement and indeed was going to be a dome more akin to the US football stadiums, in the article i remember reading that Bamber had sent representitives over to the states to check on things like Atmosphere issues that surrounded indoor stadiums at the time such as noise climate control ect. It looked impresive then and would still be now.

 

[bhaexpress]

I remember it well, it was apparently blocked by the small traders in Brighton who did not want their custom being poached by the planned Hypermarket that was to have funded the scheme.

 

[strings]

I love stadium projects that never get off the ground - they are often the bestest. A bit like Liverpool's spectacular design that will probably never happen and this beauty that was never built:

 

[Man of Harveys]

Doesn't Old Trafford ALSO have its own station? And Wembley still does.

 

[Danny-Boy]

What worries me about Falmer, which I think shows up in the £66m costs now estimated to build it, is all the work necessary to flatten the site.

Let's face it the obvious place to build a stadium quickly and cheaply is on flat land. That would have been easier when the whole field at Falmer was planned to be used for the stadium, but not when they had to squeeze it into the Brighton half , to avoid building any of the stadium structure in the part controlled by LDC.

£93m is a massive price to pay for a 21,000 seater.

 

[EastbourneGull]

I've got the copies of the Argus with all the detail somewhere, I seem to remember it made the front pages, although that might have been the Goldstone redevelopment plans. I'll try and find them when I'm home tonight.

I'd just love to see the Goldstone plans. Vaguely remember the double decker on the west side, but can't recall how they planned to deal with the chicken run and the problematical south east corner.

I also recall a piece in the Argus at about that time (or earlier?) about a hairbrain scheme to replace the crush barriers with what I can only describe as shooting sticks embedded in the terracing - a kind of halfway house between seats and standing! Anyone remember?

 

[Lady Whistledown]

I'm rather glad to note also that I evidently didn't imagine the Seagull News publication.

 

[Man of Harveys]

I'm rather glad to note also that I evidently didn't imagine the Seagull News publication.

Let's face it, that would be a pretty weird form of psychological disturbance to try and explain away.

"Doctor I'm haunted by visions...visions of fictional Brighton and Hove Albion publications containing images of proposed stadium development work"...you'd be locked up.

 

[perseus]

Railway Station

Not wanting to go back over old ground either, but whatever might have been a difficulty with Beeding, transport wouldn't have been one of them; widen the road from the A27, and re-lay rails on the track bed of the old branch to Steyning (still intact) and Brighton could have been the only club in England (apart from Arsenal) with its own station. (Derby used to have one when they were at the Baseball Ground, but not any more).

However, the arguments are long since dead and gone, so long live Falmer.

Bolton have a railway station specially built. That's how the railway station costs were Pende were arrived at £6 million or so, but the railway station was not built until Bolton reached the Premier.

 

[perseus]

What worries me about Falmer, which I think shows up in the £66m costs now estimated to build it, is all the work necessary to flatten the site.

Let's face it the obvious place to build a stadium quickly and cheaply is on flat land. That would have been easier when the whole field at Falmer was planned to be used for the stadium, but not when they had to squeeze it into the Brighton half , to avoid building any of the stadium structure in the part controlled by LDC.

£93m is a massive price to pay for a 21,000 seater.

Where do you think the spoil is going to go to?


The Orchestra plays Falmer, but where is the Picture Book?

With private capital the politicians follow the Orchestra. The Politicians just put shackles on you to prevent you doing exactly as the private capital pleases.

 

[GT49er]

I love stadium projects that never get off the ground - they are often the bestest. A bit like Liverpool's spectacular design that will probably never happen and this beauty that was never built:

Liverpool were planning to play at Molineux?

 

[GT49er]

"I love stadium projects that never get off the ground - they are often the bestest. A bit like Liverpool's spectacular design that will probably never happen and this beauty that was never built:"

Whoops - didn't read the whole of the text!