Oxford United Stadium Update: The U’s Hope For Positive News
Oxford United have said they are pleased to see the agenda papers published that confirms OCC’s Cabinet will be making a decision on the 24th of January whether or not to pursue negotiations in relation to the proposed site known as ‘The Triangle’ (east of Frieze Way/south of Kidlington roundabout). They are looking forward to the meeting and urge the council to help provide the club, their supporters and the whole of Oxfordshire with some positive news to start the year.
Last week’s FA Cup match saw the nation’s footballing eyes on Oxford United and demonstrated exactly what benefits could be enjoyed by the Oxfordshire community if we were able to cement our place in our community. The entire country heard the need for the club to move to a more secure, more sustainable and more befitting stadium from some of the biggest names in football, players and pundits alike. However, their expert opinions are not enough. There is an urgent need for clarity and certainty to enable Oxford United to make a meaningful step forward towards securing the Club's future and they need the council to deliver on a decision that allows OUFC to proceed to the next stage.
As the Club have said previously, the overarching aim of the club has remained the same throughout; to secure a world-class, secure and sustainable new home for OUFC and to maximise the club’s contribution to the local Oxfordshire community. This remains our priority and the need to protect the club’s 129-year history is as pressing as ever. This statement may seem familiar - and that’s because it is. The Club's aim has not changed since the first potential decision was taken last January but we are now a year on, a year closer to their license agreement ending and no further in making progress in securing a new stadium.
The U’s have spent the last year working tirelessly on addressing the points raised about Stratfield Brake. This has included appointing a world-class design and technical team to address the 5 initial questions from the council, undertaking initial consultation with residents and fans and working with all our community and resident partners, all at considerable cost and time. We are hopeful that much of this is not wasted and the principles and work undertaken thus far can be transferred over to the Triangle site.
Niall McWilliams, Chief Strategy Officer said: “We are extremely grateful to the council for their consistent willingness to help identify a solution. They have always been fair, transparent and honest in their dealings with us. I must now be equally so with them – the club is running out of time. We need your backing for The Triangle site, or alternatively reverting to Stratfield Brake now. We simply cannot endure further months or years of delay. I welcome Tuesday’s meeting and look forward to putting the club’s case forward, but should the decision be to proceed with negotiations, I also urge the council to commit to concluding the negotiations as soon as possible. We have delivered on every commitment we have made thus far, and we will continue to do so. That includes addressing the new conditions for negotiations as well as extensive further engagement with the local community and fans. But we cannot move to that stage, without the all-important go-ahead to move to the pre‑submission planning phase.
“More than anything else, after a year of uncertainty, toing and froing, stop-start decisions, what we need above anything else is clarity.”
