Luton Town Will Have To Rebuild An Entire Stand If They Reach The Promised Land
Luton are planning to demolish and rebuild their Bobbers Stand if they secure promotion to the Premier League by beating Coventry in the play-off final on Saturday at Wembley Stadium. The Hatters will demolish and rebuild the entire stand in just one summer to bring Kenilworth Road up to Premier League standards.
It will cost close to £10million to knock down the old Bobbers Stand, which was turned into executive boxes in 1986, running down one side of the pitch, and replace it with new facilities including a media centre, TV and data analysis studios, toilets and a canteen. Chief Executive Gary Sweet is confident it can be ready in 12 weeks if necessary before the new Premier League season begins in mid-August. 'If anyone can, we can,' vowed Sweet. 'We've got to practically rebuild a stand but we'll have gone from non-League to the Premier League so we can manage that small matter.'
Luton also plan to install some new seating for fans and may be able to increase the capacity slightly at the ground, which has been home to the club since it first opened in 1905. There will also be an upgrade for the floodlights and new camera positions to meet the demands of the Premier League for their high definition broadcast rights.
Promotion to the top flight is worth £180million, a windfall not vital but certainly helpful to completing the stadium project, and may enable the Hatters to aim for a larger capacity than the one currently planned, for about 19,200. Until then, Kenilworth Road would add unique charm to the glitzy Premier League if they complete their incredible rise from non-League to the top-flight in just nine years.
“This is real life, real football, history, tradition right here,” added Sweet. “This isn't a sterile bowl. This is lively. This is emotion. This is white knuckles, tears and joy in this stadium. This is a cauldron. If you can't embrace it you don't love football.”
A major issue which might become a point of contention for security and safety is that there is no wriggle room on the access, though, leaving visiting fans to enter the away end through the Oak Road entrance, squeezed into a row of terraced houses.
“There aren't any other access points,” said Sweet. “It is as it is. We might have a lick of paint and new signage every so often but let's embrace this. It annoys me and makes me giggle when you get the social media content about an away end going through gardens.”
