Birmingham City moved a step closer to a new stadium after owners accomplished the purchase of land to the east of the city, lower than a mile from their St Andrew’s home.
Knighthead Capital Management’s deal to purchase the 48-acre former Birmingham Wheels site at Bordesley Park will see the Blues leave St Andrew’s.
However, there isn’t any date yet when the club will move.
The Blues are currently in the bottom three of the Championship table and are in peril of relegation.
Next Saturday’s 2-1 defeat against Leicester City Currently blues under interim boss Gary Rowett for the rest of the seasonthey are a point off safety with just five games left.
Knighthead says the new stadium and training facilities on the site, a short walk from the city centre, will create a “world-class” sports precinct and create 3,000 jobs.
Birmingham City Council first confirmed the decision last month that the land was in the final stage of sale.
Sales talks have been happening for weeks, including: President of the US-based club, Tom WagnerBlues chief executive Garry Cook and the council’s chief commissioner Max Caller, and the mediator is Mayor of the West Midlands Andy Street.
A Government grant of roughly £17 million has been secured through the Equalization Fund to assist clean up the site and, because of the funding, work to clear the site has already began.
As a condition of receiving the money, the city council will provide a further £1.9 million.
The club says the site will feature a “new multi-use stadium, high-performance training facilities and other mixed-use developments, including a range of entertainment facilities.”
“Our owners have ambitions bigger than anything this club has ever seen,” Cook said. “When we deliver this, the impact on Birmingham’s global reputation will be huge.”
Chairman Wagner added: “When we invested in Birmingham City, we made it very clear that we had an ambitious vision to transform the experience for our fans and make a positive contribution to the city’s growth and vitality.
“The acquisition of the former Wheels headquarters is another important step in making this plan a reality. The plans for the Sports Quarter will generate global interest in our club and across Birmingham.
“This will change the future of our men’s, women’s and academic teams, as well as the fate of the community we call home.”
The Blues have played at their existing home in Small Heath since 1906 and now even have two training pitches.
The men’s first team is predicated in Henley-in Arden took over the former Wasps training base, while the women’s and academy teams train at their long-standing facility in the south of the city, Kings Norton, Wast Hills.
“Tom Wagner’s Ambitions Are for All to See”
Analysis – Richard Wilford from BBC Radio WM
It is just not known exactly where these additional 12 acres are positioned, but it surely is cheap to assume that they are near the most important site. The creation of a sports precinct on the edge of the city center is a major opportunity for Birmingham as a whole, let alone the football club.
The ambitions of Tom Wagner and his Knighthead group are there for all to see.
Credit : www.bbc.co.uk
