NewsNorth East NewsSt James Park Newcastle United fans win bid to challenge Mike Ashley with St James Park plan14 October 2014 01:32 PMBy Katie DaviesThe Newcastle United Supporters Trust have won the right to have the ground protected as an asset of community value Getty Images St James Park Toon fans have won their battle to safeguard St James’ Park as a city centre asset. As reported previously in the Chronicle, members of the Newcastle United Supporters’ Trust submitted an application to Newcastle City Council for the stadium to be listed as an “asset of community value”. Now council leaders have approved the application - meaning the ground can’t be sold without the local community being told about it, and them being given the opportunity to bid for it themselves. The NUST say the approval “symbolically recognises” that the club is part of the local community. style=box-sizing: border-box; width: 300px; border: 0px; vertical-align: bottom;> It also means that St James’ Park are in line with a number of other grounds, including Manchester United’s Old Trafford and Liverpool’s Anfield. The club have eight weeks to appeal the council’s decision. NUST board member Peter Fanning said: “It’s more of a symbolic gesture at Newcastle because they don’t own the land the Freeman of the City do. “We want to demonstrate that anything to do with Newcastle United is a community issue. It’s a big club in a big city and it should be a community asset - it should be recognised as an asset of community value. “It’s a symbolic recognition that the club is part of the local community. “It gives us the right to be told is going to happen. It doesn’t give us powers to stop them from doing anything but it gives the local community the opportunity to know what is happening.” In March this year it emerged that Newcastle United had placed a 1.62acre plot of land on Strawberry Place, next to St James’ Park, on the market with a multi-million-pound price tag. Currently a car park, the land is owned by Newcastle United Holdings Ltd and is seen as the only possible location for expansion of the Tyneside club. Once it is sold it could be developed into a hotel, student accommodation or a retail outlet. Jordan
Posted on: Tue, 14 Oct 2014 14:47:49 +0000
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