Lots of new and pictures over at Save Bute Park and Hit it for Six, the planning officer has recommended against the new developments in Sophia Gardens. There was a rally there yesterday and there are plenty of nice pictures at the two blogs.
The opposition comes in the form of the Cardiff Devils website, the Elite League message boards and an online petition.
There is a lot about this debate that doesn't quite make sense. It seems that ideally the hockey people would rather stay where they are, in town, but that their site has already been promised to John Lewis and St Davids II by the council. In any case they have been promised a place in the Bay in a few years time, although they are understandably sceptical as the council has been promising them a new rink for 10 years. The building at Sophia Gardens will then be turned over to public ice skating and indoor facility for the other sports groups. An important part of the new development that seems to be overlooked is the increase in the capacity of the cricket club.
The debate seems to be along two camps: the anti-development local and green protesters and the Cardiff Devils fans, which seems massively oversimplified. I am sure that no-one in the anti-development camp begrudges the hockey a stadium, they just dispute the location. The hockey fans are so determined to build on Sophia Gardens because they are terrified of being left with no stadium anywhere. The really crucial decision involved the council and new developments in the town centre that was made last year. There seems no reason why both the anti-development and new-hockey-stadium-supporters can't have their way, it is with the other players in the game that the real power lies.
posted by Frances @ 10:39
1 comments
1 Comments:
You are right to highlight the lack of attention to the plans to develop the cricket ground - an additional 16,004 seats to a total of 17,569 seats. At present GCCC install temporary seating for their few big matches. They have an average of 2750 to a home match (all of which they lost last year).
The indoor arena (aka Ice Hockey Home) has also been presented disengenuously: it's a permanent building (of awful design say Council officers) there solely to "generate revenue" for GCCC. It's not an altrusistic club providing a home for ice hockey at all: it would unlock a £2.5M cash payment from Cardiff Council and guaranteed rent for the club.
But it has been in the interest of Paul Russell (Chair GCCC) to characterise opposition to this huge scheme as NIMBY, and by the ice hockey fans as Pontcanna residents killing their sport. Such is the art of spin.
Hopefully, this time it will fail, but not before thousands of ice hockey fans have been shafted.
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