- Chelsea submit planning application for 60,000-capacity redevelopment of Stamford Bridge
- Premier League champions confirm plans will be submitted to Hammersmith and Fulham council
- The club hope the new stadium can be completed by 2020 at a cost of £600million
- But some football fans ridiculed the design, likening it to an egg slicer, a colander and even a Slinky toy
Chelsea's
planning application for a new 60,000-seat ground, on the site of
Stamford Bridge, has revealed the full scale of what will be the
country's most ambitious stadium build yet.
On
Tuesday, 160 documents were published featuring images of the Blues'
planned new home, with work on the £600million-plus, three-year project
expected to be signed off in the summer.
Provided
they get the necessary backing in the now-launched consultation period,
Chelsea could begin life at a revamped Stamford Bridge on the first day
of the 2020-2021 season.
However,
the new design hasn't gone down well with all football fans, with some
claiming the stadium will look like a colander, a Slinky toy or an egg
slicer.
Chelsea have submitted a planning
application for their new 60,000-seat stadium at Stamford Bridge which
they hope to open in 2020
The Barclays Premier League champions have consulted neighbours over the redevelopment of their west London home
Chelsea will move out of Stamford
Bridge for three years while work is undertaken on their ground, which
will include brick columns
Chelsea could begin life in their new home on the first day of the 2020-2021 season should they receive the necessary backing
Some Twitter users ridiculed the design, with the new stadium being likened to a Slinky toy, an egg slicer and a colander
Roman
Abramovich's design team, spearheaded by Herzog & de Meuron – most
famous for their work on Bayern Munich's incredible Allianz Arena and
the beautiful Beijing Bird's Nest – have produced a new 60,000-capacity
ground that draws Westminster Abbey among its influences.
The stands will have the same names so fans can stay in their favoured
place. This is because at two public exhibitions to showcase the plans,
which drew a 93 per cent approval rate, the most common question fans
asked stadium planners was where their seat would be.
Methods
of keeping the neighbours onside will also be explored with apprentice
schemes to learn building skills during construction and ensuring
minimum disruption by employing Keltbray, the firm who are painstakingly
bringing down Earls Court Exhibition Centre brick by brick.
And
there is further good news for supporters, with one of Stamford
Bridge’s defining features – the stands’ close proximity to the pitch –
being maintained.
The
Chelsea fans’ closeness to the action is seen as the top redeeming
aspect of the atmosphere at SW6, and the new ground sees seats placed as
little as 7.2metres from the players.
The South Terrace and Britannia Entrance of today (top) compared to images of how Stamford Bridge may look by 2020
The redevelopment will see the current ground demolished, along with the surrounding hotels, restaurants and health centre
The planning application was submitted by Abramovich's Fordstam company on November 19, Hammersmith and Fulham council said.
Two images of how Stamford Bridge could look with a yellow outline showing the current shape of Chelsea's stadium
HOW THE REVAMP ROLLS OUT
October 2016-October 2017 (Phase One)
Construction of rafting over the railway lines behind the East Stand and Matthew Harding Stand begins.
Both Stamford Bridge hotels, a range of bars and restaurants and the Stamford Bridge Health Club are demolished.
May 2017
Chelsea play their last game at Stamford Bridge as it stands, leaving for three years to facilitate the rebuild.
June 2017-September 2018 (Phase Two)
The old Stamford Bridge is demolished. Digging down to accommodate the height of the new stadium begins.
July 2018-October 2019 (Phase Three)
Stadium is constructed from scratch
December 2018-July 2020 (Phase Four)
Fitting out of the surrounding area is completed, with a restaurant/café included on-site along with a new club shop and museum.
August 2020
Chelsea return to play at a 60,000-capacity Stamford Bridge for the first time.
As
seen in the images from the application, the main construction feature
on the new ground will be the 264 brick columns that surround it, with
glass connecting each one to provide the structure of the roof and walls
of the stadium.
Decorative
metal will run across the glass to provide the silvery-effect seen in
some images, providing a cathedral-colosseum look to the new ground.
The
number of hospitality seats available will almost double from 4,628 to
8,969 with those paying top dollar occupying the East and West sides of
the middle tier, and the East side of the upper tier.
Away
fans will continue to be seated in the Shed End but with their
following being split across the three tiers similar to the system at
Manchester City’s Etihad Stadium.
A
statement on the club's official website confirmed plans had be
submitted to Hammersmith and Fulham council, and consultation is now
open until January 8 next year.
'A
planning application for a new stadium at Stamford Bridge with an
expanded seating capacity has been submitted,' Chelsea’s statement read.
'This follows a successful consultation process during which we received very helpful feedback.
'This application will now be examined by the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham.'
Provided
permission is given, work will start at the end of this season with the
building of expanded access from the current stadium's rear to Fulham
Broadway station through the building of slats over the railway lines
behind the East Stand and Matthew Harding Stand.
Chelsea
would then be forced to vacate their home for a full demolition of the
site in 2017, playing away from the ground that has hosted them for 110
years for a three-year period.
During
construction, Chelsea will consider having a resident hawk scout across
the Stamford Bridge site on a daily basis to prevent 'nuisance birds'
from taking up residence as the stadium is rebuilt.
Workers
will dig down to reduce the height of the stadium, which will appear
vastly bigger than the current structure but will, in fact, not be
taller than now.
Wembley
Stadium is Chelsea’s expected temporary destination with talks already
at an advanced stage, although Tottenham Hotspur also have eyes on the
National Stadium.
A
mooted move to Rugby HQ at Twickenham would struggle to get off the
ground with residents’ concerns and Chelsea are confident that they are
close to signing off a deal at the stadium they last visited for this
season’s Community Shield.
After
three years at Wembley, Chelsea will then move back at the turn of the
new decade with existing season-ticket holders to be offered identical
seats to their current ones, but in a ground built almost entirely from
scratch.
Blue supporters will be allowed to keep their old seat positions from Stamford Bridge if they wish
The stadium redevelopment is being entirely financed by Chelsea's Russian owner Roman Abramovich
Sportsmail revealed earlier this year that the Barclays Premier League champions would need to take Wembley
at a reduced capacity, with a loophole allowing them to house 50,000
spectators on a regular basis.
Wembley
is limited to 37 'major' events each year but occasions that do not
utilise the 40,000-capacity top tier of the ground are not considered
‘major’. With appropriate planning, the Blues could even open up the
upper tier for games with enough demand for tickets.
Back
at Stamford Bridge, the redevelopment will see the surrounding hotels,
restaurants and health centre knocked down before work on demolition and
then construction of the new stadium begins.
A
club shop and museum will be rebuilt, alongside a new area touted as a
‘restaurant/cafe’ that could be utilised as a bar for supporters on
matchdays.
Those
wishing to comment on the application have until Friday January 8,
2016, to submit their observations to Hammersmith and Fulham Council.
Feedback on consultation so far has been positive and it looks unlikely
that Chelsea will find many roadblocks to their plans.
Abramovich's design team, spearheaded
by Herzog & de Meuron – most famous for their work on Bayern
Munich's incredible Allianz Arena
Premier League rivals Chelsea and Tottenham both want to use Wembley while their own stadiums are being redeveloped
