Derby County has unveiled its vision of the future by announcing plans for a £20m development around Pride Park Stadium.
The proposed Pride Plaza scheme would see eye-catching changes to the west and east sides of the ground.
Plans which have still to be formally submitted to Derby City Council include an eight-storey 165-bed hotel, office space, a convenience store, banking, restaurants and bars all set in tree-lined pedestrian-friendly squares.
About 250 jobs would be created by the scheme.
The club sees the development becoming a local service centre for the people who work at the many businesses on Pride Park while providing improved facilities for the fans on match days.
Designs of the two-storey or three-storey individual buildings will not block views of the main entrance to the stadium.
There will also be two squares on the west side of the stadium named after Rams legends Steve Bloomer and Brian Clough, with a monument to each.
The road behind the east stand will become a more vibrant area and will be named Lionel Pickering Way as a tribute to the club's former chairman.
Current chairman Peter Gadsby, pictured, was the director who oversaw the original stadium development.
He said: "When we first built Pride Park we were always aware of further development potential and when I came back to the club almost 12 months ago with the current board of directors we indicated we would look to maximise that potential for the benefit of the club."
Derby could either make land available for sale to interested companies or fund the building of units themselves for rental.
Mr Gadsby says the 'Pride Plaza' project will not impact on any football revenue.
"No football or promotion income will be used to support this scheme," he said. "We anticipate strong demand for the new commercial space. Indeed, we already have interest from two global brands."
Preliminary talks with the planning authority have been positive, according to the Rams, and time-scales will be dictated by the planning process and negotiations with individual businesses.
The planning application could go in within three months.
Eighty car park spaces will be lost at the stadium to make way for the new development but the club will look at alternative arrangements.
"We are confident any parking issues can be addressed," said Mr Gadsby. "People may be worried about their parking but this is unlikely to take their parking away."
The club will press on with the plans irrespective of in which division it finds itself next season.
Chris Sabian, Peak District View - 2007-04-27 10:47:18
Showing posts with label city. Show all posts
Showing posts with label city. Show all posts
Friday, April 27, 2007
Friday, March 23, 2007
Reaction to Council Tax Study
Sir Michael Lyons has called for a new top-rate council tax band leading to increased bills for those in the most expensive homes.
This would be balanced by a new band at the bottom of the rating scale to reduce the tax for people in the smallest homes, many of them pensioners.
But Chris Williamson, leader of Derby City Council, believes the report does not go far enough.
He said: "It is a missed opportunity to really reform the council tax system. The system at the moment is such a crude instrument in collecting tax.
"Something like a purchase tax would be a much more effective way of addressing the city's needs."
An example Mr Williamson used of purchase tax would be if a 1p levy was placed on all chewing gum sold in the city with all the money generating being used to pay to clean up chewing gum from Derby's pavements.
Mr Williamson was also disappointed with the report's rejection of long-standing demands from local government for the restoration of their powers to set and collect the business rate.
Sir Michael had said the business community did not trust town halls to set the rate fairly.
But he recommended that councils should be given the power to impose a supplementary business rate, in consultation with local companies, to fund infrastructure projects.
Business rates are currently fixed nationally and linked to inflation - although the report did say changes could be considered in the long term.
Mr Williamson said he did not agree with Sir Michael's comments.
He said: "I think it's a bit of a slur against local government to suggest the business community does not trust us to set rates.
"We have been a four-star council for the past few years and think that the power to set rates should be offered as a reward for all the good work that is done."
Launching his report in London, Sir Michael also called for the introduction of new powers to allow councils to charge for waste collection and disposal, in a bid to reduce the amounts of rubbish going to landfill.
He rejected suggestions that this would amount to "double-charging" of householders, who already pay for rubbish collection in their council tax bills, but said it would encourage people to compost organic waste and reduce the amount of packaging they buy.
Mr Williamson said the council did not have any plans to consider charging extra for waste collection.
He said: "We are already hitting our targets for recycling."
Alan Cox, leader of Amber Valley Borough Council, was also very critical of the report.
He said: "The report is a damp squib. It has taken four years in the making and has come up with nothing new.
"Local government were hoping for some radical proposals. The whole exercise has been a waste of money."
What i read from all of this is bigger bills and more bills for both domestic and business people.
Chris Sabian, Peak District View - 2007-03-23 03:40:31
This would be balanced by a new band at the bottom of the rating scale to reduce the tax for people in the smallest homes, many of them pensioners.
But Chris Williamson, leader of Derby City Council, believes the report does not go far enough.
He said: "It is a missed opportunity to really reform the council tax system. The system at the moment is such a crude instrument in collecting tax.
"Something like a purchase tax would be a much more effective way of addressing the city's needs."
An example Mr Williamson used of purchase tax would be if a 1p levy was placed on all chewing gum sold in the city with all the money generating being used to pay to clean up chewing gum from Derby's pavements.
Mr Williamson was also disappointed with the report's rejection of long-standing demands from local government for the restoration of their powers to set and collect the business rate.
Sir Michael had said the business community did not trust town halls to set the rate fairly.
But he recommended that councils should be given the power to impose a supplementary business rate, in consultation with local companies, to fund infrastructure projects.
Business rates are currently fixed nationally and linked to inflation - although the report did say changes could be considered in the long term.
Mr Williamson said he did not agree with Sir Michael's comments.
He said: "I think it's a bit of a slur against local government to suggest the business community does not trust us to set rates.
"We have been a four-star council for the past few years and think that the power to set rates should be offered as a reward for all the good work that is done."
Launching his report in London, Sir Michael also called for the introduction of new powers to allow councils to charge for waste collection and disposal, in a bid to reduce the amounts of rubbish going to landfill.
He rejected suggestions that this would amount to "double-charging" of householders, who already pay for rubbish collection in their council tax bills, but said it would encourage people to compost organic waste and reduce the amount of packaging they buy.
Mr Williamson said the council did not have any plans to consider charging extra for waste collection.
He said: "We are already hitting our targets for recycling."
Alan Cox, leader of Amber Valley Borough Council, was also very critical of the report.
He said: "The report is a damp squib. It has taken four years in the making and has come up with nothing new.
"Local government were hoping for some radical proposals. The whole exercise has been a waste of money."
What i read from all of this is bigger bills and more bills for both domestic and business people.
Chris Sabian, Peak District View - 2007-03-23 03:40:31
Sunday, March 11, 2007
Cathedral falcons return to breed
Cameras have been installed on Derby Cathedral in anticipation of a pair of peregrine falcons breeding.
The nesting birds are expected to start breeding later this month so two web cameras and a microphone have been attached to a special wooden platform.
The peregrine falcons first hatched chicks on Derby Cathedral in 2006 and have returned to nest this year.
Organisers expect thousands of people to watch live pictures of the birds as their progress is filmed.
In 2006, thousands of people visited the cathedral to catch a glimpse of the new family.
The Derby Peregrine Project has been set up by Derby City Council, Derbyshire Wildlife Trust and Derby Cathedral.
Strange but I thought there were laws against voyeurism.
Chris Sabian, Peak District View - 2007-03-11 02:19:07
The nesting birds are expected to start breeding later this month so two web cameras and a microphone have been attached to a special wooden platform.
The peregrine falcons first hatched chicks on Derby Cathedral in 2006 and have returned to nest this year.
Organisers expect thousands of people to watch live pictures of the birds as their progress is filmed.
In 2006, thousands of people visited the cathedral to catch a glimpse of the new family.
The Derby Peregrine Project has been set up by Derby City Council, Derbyshire Wildlife Trust and Derby Cathedral.
Strange but I thought there were laws against voyeurism.
Chris Sabian, Peak District View - 2007-03-11 02:19:07
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