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- 13,345
Really? Beyond belief!
Training ground update
Really? Beyond belief!
F
Former user.
The club have not made any public statements on training ground at all.
However if you personally ask Mr Ridsdale or Mr. Kay that is what they will tell you.
Thank you for that CB. It's so important for the forum to know this.
I'm quite surprised actually.
My first comment is this : I believe that it is best for the forum for it to remain proportionate in its response to the club, whichever way that is presented.
There should not be any deceit, from club to fanbase or vice-versa. It just doesn't help.
I would ask JK and others to consider asking the club to make a statement that it still adheres to the original plan, which was to build the training complex at the earliest opportunity and specifically not make it dependent upon any aspect of delivery of the housing.
That is potentially a very short letter to the club. And therefore good.
Also thanks to Thracia for drawing to my attention the articles in Blog Preston - I agree with you.
I'm quite surprised actually.
My first comment is this : I believe that it is best for the forum for it to remain proportionate in its response to the club, whichever way that is presented.
There should not be any deceit, from club to fanbase or vice-versa. It just doesn't help.
I would ask JK and others to consider asking the club to make a statement that it still adheres to the original plan, which was to build the training complex at the earliest opportunity and specifically not make it dependent upon any aspect of delivery of the housing.
That is potentially a very short letter to the club. And therefore good.
Also thanks to Thracia for drawing to my attention the articles in Blog Preston - I agree with you.
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- 2,399
OP
northendmanc
Analytical annoyance
A decent investigative journalist could answer many of these questions for us. Sedds chooses not to for the sake of his relationship with the club, which speaks volumes about the fact that nothing is happening. As I suggested in the original post, it would be great if one of the organisations seeking to increase coverage (LancsLive?) could figure out exactly what is / isn’t going on. Simple steps would include:
- visit to the sites of the housing developments and training ground, taking pictures of progress to show if anything has happened or not.
- interview with planning specialists who can set out timelines for what needs to happen
- interview with the club (or no comment, as seems likely)
- speak to the contractors we know are involved and find out if they have actually done anything (the architects and people who posted pictures of the signs for tree felling - obviously done subtly to find out what’s going on without them realising it’s specifically on the training ground)
- review of finances revealing cost of buying the land etc
- visit to the sites of the housing developments and training ground, taking pictures of progress to show if anything has happened or not.
- interview with planning specialists who can set out timelines for what needs to happen
- interview with the club (or no comment, as seems likely)
- speak to the contractors we know are involved and find out if they have actually done anything (the architects and people who posted pictures of the signs for tree felling - obviously done subtly to find out what’s going on without them realising it’s specifically on the training ground)
- review of finances revealing cost of buying the land etc
I recall what the BBC reported back in 2017:
"Preston North End's revised plans for a housing development, which will fund the building of a new training ground, have received approval."
What's key here is the concept that the training ground is to be funded by the housing development. For me that means it starts when the majority of the houses have been paid for by purchasers.
"Preston North End's revised plans for a housing development, which will fund the building of a new training ground, have received approval."
What's key here is the concept that the training ground is to be funded by the housing development. For me that means it starts when the majority of the houses have been paid for by purchasers.
Investigative journalism is very hard to do well now a days with the lack of money in journalism. Online publications earn way less per story so it doesn't make economic sense to have someone work for a week routing out the truth of a story for the limited advertising revenue you can get off one online article, especially when that article is only going to be of interest for one smallish group of people.
Grayson’s training hope
Preston boss Simon Grayson is keeping his fingers crossed that the club’s plans for a new training ground are given the green light.
www.lep.co.uk
Or don’t earn anything at all like us! We chose not to put ads on the site as we wanted to produce (objectively) good quality content and not hide it behind a paywall or infiltrate a reader’s experience with a load of ads, much unlike most other sites.
It's interesting to see the difference in the quote from the LEP and the BBC one which implies to opposite (first houses then training ground). Neither cite a source at the Club.Grayson’s training hope
Preston boss Simon Grayson is keeping his fingers crossed that the club’s plans for a new training ground are given the green light.
It's obvious to me the BBC one represents the reality.
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- Feb 27, 2006
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That’s how I remember it being said all along and this is a very good piece of investigative research Sedgwick....I wouldn’t know where to start.Grayson’s training hope
Preston boss Simon Grayson is keeping his fingers crossed that the club’s plans for a new training ground are given the green light.
Anyone can see what was originally stated and if they try to spin it as otherwise they are just apologists for what’s a very poor state of affairs.
In selling the land for the training ground to the club, TH has deliberately broken the link between the development of the housing sites and that of the training complex.
It is more than likely that the acquisition cost was funded via transfer fee receipts from either West Ham or Cardiff.
The responsibility for the development of the training ground now lies with the club, and a failure to begin its development within the life of the planning permission will not impact on the permission for the development of the housing sites. TH has therefore seperated the profitable element of the wider plan for the golf club (ie the housing), from its loss incurring element (the training ground).
Unless we are going to see a change of leadership within the Hemmings portfolio of companies - and a subsequent reversal in the approach to the club - I fear that we may not see the new training ground completed until after a change in ownership.
It is more than likely that the acquisition cost was funded via transfer fee receipts from either West Ham or Cardiff.
The responsibility for the development of the training ground now lies with the club, and a failure to begin its development within the life of the planning permission will not impact on the permission for the development of the housing sites. TH has therefore seperated the profitable element of the wider plan for the golf club (ie the housing), from its loss incurring element (the training ground).
Unless we are going to see a change of leadership within the Hemmings portfolio of companies - and a subsequent reversal in the approach to the club - I fear that we may not see the new training ground completed until after a change in ownership.
The BBC quote doesn't really imply anything. Houses can fund the facility whether they're built before or afterwards, planning is there to build them regardless.
The LEP have a close link to the club and as Yoowell says I do recall quite well that the message coming out at the time was training ground first, houses afterwards.
We've been misled, as have the LEP.
At a later date, John Kay said at a forum in 2018 that they planned for it to be done by June 2019. No mention of housing having to be done first -
Thracia
Club Owner, or wingback, depending on your view
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- Aug 1, 2011
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Suggest you read it - it contains much definite information.
I didn’t pick up too much when I first glimpsed through it but when I have time I will look again.
Didn’t see any mention of the general state of the housing market going forwards which I would think is pretty key to the project. I’ve been hearing rumours demand is rapidly slowing down on new builds.
LancasterRed
Mad Scientist
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- Mar 24, 2019
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- 4,184
@Chip Barm can you confirm?
IMO this is no excuse though. Trev has the money and this only has benefits.
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- Jan 4, 2008
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I wouldn’t say demand is slowing down (certainly not here in the South East) but many developers are getting squeezed on prices and having to discount heavily to sell. The investor and high end markets are dead, however.
The saviour of the property industry in recent years has been the government help to buy scheme, which is restricted to new builds.
F
Former user.
The BBC Sport website have about as much inside knowledge of Preston North End as I have of the life and times of the lost tribes of South Madagascar!
Stop apologising for the club on this very clear issue.
Members of the forum attended the planning meeting and I listened to the live stream.
The club insisted the training ground would be built first and funded by the owner who would then sell housing to reclaim the cost.
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Has anybody considered that the reason the development has not started is because of Brexit? The governments own independent research predicts a significant fall in house prices in the event of No Deal/the nation throwing itself off a cliff.
Who knows what the margins are on this scheme? If they’re tight, then it makes a lot of sense to wait until it becomes clear what is going to happen to the economy. Uncle Trev isn’t a billionaire for nothing.
Who knows what the margins are on this scheme? If they’re tight, then it makes a lot of sense to wait until it becomes clear what is going to happen to the economy. Uncle Trev isn’t a billionaire for nothing.