Goodnight Irene At The Quarters.

I wouldn’t dispute that conversations have taken place, and I think it’s highly likely that adjustments will be made to the green belt - I’m just saying that it’s not likely to be a quick process and might have to wait for the formal adoption of the new local plan.

The green belt runs up to the southern edge of Thornbury, so developments to to the north, north west and east of it, only have the usual hurdles to clear to get built.

Anything is possible Trymer, especially when all parties concerned sit down and talk.

Your last idea is the perfect for for that location Swiss. The development next door known as Hortham Village is sat on quite a large sum of money to provide a community facility which was provided by the developers as part of their S106. Perhaps this could be used to provide a community shop or similar to assist both developments. Steve Hamer was made aware of this funding when Dwane purchased the Quarters to see if Hortham Village wanted to co invest in a community building on the land.

Steve Hamer and others have been portrayed as villains but when the dust has settled and Gasheads regain a sense of proportion I think we’ll discover that we’ve been given a distorted version of the truth.

It was Steve who persuaded Hani Al-Qadi to pay £1.1 million for the land at Colony Farm and, together with other Gasheads, made an ambitious attempt to persuade him to approve investment in a modern state of the art development there.

www.punchline-gloucester.com/articles/aanews/county-firm-wins-deal-for-new-football-training-ground

But his most important contribution to Rovers future was the negotiation of the land purchase without an overage agreement which would have given the previous owners a share of any profits if it was later sold. If such a clause had been included then we probably wouldn’t now be discussing how Rovers can make the most beneficial use of the land at the training ground.

You weren't the only one sceptical of the "rumour."

In reply to the 2022 South Glos ‘Call for Sites’ in preparation for the new local plan, Avison Young, responding for the club, included “later living” residential models as part of their description of possible development.

Perhaps your plan may yet come to fruition. 😀

I guess I should declare an interest Womble.

My interest is Bristol Rovers.

And my fear is that selling a portion of the training ground to developers could raise X millions but that those X millions will quickly disappear into a black hole instread of enabling the total transformation of the club which is what is needed.

If we want a first class training ground and a first class stadium then we've got to stop looking for the quick easy solutions of which selling off assets is one.  Much better IMO if we could find a way to squeeze more out of the asset than just its value as developmend land and at the same time create a first class and sustainable football training facility.

Apart from the pitches (which according to the outline plan would have to be replaced anyway) what does a first class training centre need :

Management Staff
Security Staff
Maintenance Staff
Car Parking
Eco friendly landscaping to create a stress free environment
Gymnasium 
Restaurant
Swimming/Hydrotherapy Pool
Indoor Sports Hall
Changing rooms
Rooms for Medical treatment and therapy
Media Rooms
Meeting rooms 
Office accomodation
  
But how can such an investment in first class facilities be justified when, even with the full squad and academy included, it will only be used for a few hours per week ? 

Is the answer to drop the "first class" description and do the best we can with the resources available, more commonly known as the "BRFC make do and mend approach" ?

Or should we try something different ?

The Integrated Retirement Community concept is very much in vogue and some serious operators are moving into the market so there are good joint venture possibilities. The facilities desired in an up market IRC are virtually identical to those on the list above and through effective management those facilities could be shared with the football club and therefore used efficiently, seven days per week, making the investment justified.

The target clients for an up market IRC are those downsizing from large properties who will demand very high standards and be able to pay for them. We often say that high property prices in the Bristol area are of detriment to Rovers but in this case they can be turned to our advantage. How much of the equity from their 5 bedroom property would a couple be willing to pay to downsize to a high quality retirement community in the country but only a few minutes from Bristol ?  House prices are well publicised and the number of expected units at the Quarters has been revealed so if the equity figure each buyer would put into their new property was, for example, 50% the potential capital sum generated is easy to work out. But it doesn't stop there because in an IRC the members of the community pay a monthly service fee for maintenance, security and use of the facilities so, if properly managed, the Rovers training centre and sports science park could actually become a revenue generator instead of costing the club close to 500K pa as is the case now.

And there's more.

Hussain has said that he hopes banks and other institutions will finance the redevelopment of the Mem but on what basis does he expect them to lend the money ?  There is no track record of running the business well and generating profits which would give the banks any confidence so the only way would be for him to provide them with the security they would need to be sure their loans would be paid back. But if Rovers were able to pull off a successful development project at the Quarters it would show potential financiers the club did have the wherewithal and business acumen necessary to move onto a bigger development at the Mem. Which would enhance the chances of securing backing for a first class stadium redevelopment and this, IMO, is what we really want. 

     

Document from April 2022.

Skip right to the bottom to see the proposed residential development is pretty much the footprint of the existing training pitches.