'Final Hurdle' to Chelsea FC's New Stadium is Thrown Out
Judge rejects application for judicial review of H&F Council's approval of plans
A high court judge has thrown out an application for a judicial review of Hammersmith & Fulham Council’s approval of plans for Chelsea Football Club’s new stadium.
Barristers acting for H&F Council say this meansthe "final hurdle" to the new stadium has now been rejected.
The planning permission to create the £500 million, 60,000 seat stadium designed by Swiss architect Herzog & de Meuron was challenged mainly on the alleged shortcomings in the treatment of air quality in the officer’s report and the environmental statement, according to lawyers instructed by Hammersmith & Fulham Council.
Cornerstone Barristers added that High Court judge Mrs Justice Andrews refused permission to proceed with the claim earlier this month on the basis that none of the grounds had any chance of success.
She also applied a ruling so that the claimant, who has not been named, could not request the decision be reconsidered at an oral hearing, the law firm said.
In May, consultant Aecom, on behalf of the football club applied to Hammersmith & Fulham council to make non-material amendments to the wording of the planning permission to address some of the grounds for the judicial review application.
A report from the planning officer John Sanchez last month confirmed that the council’s approval of the planning application was "subject of an application for Judicial Review".
“While the Council does not accept the claims made by the Claimant in that judicial review in their entirety, the current application for nonmaterial amendments to the existing planning permission is intended to address some of the grounds identified by the claimant,” the report added.
The council approved the redevelopment of Stamford Bridge in January, which was then rubber-stamped by the mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, at the end of March.
The Premier League club, owned by Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich and which has so far splashed out close to £150m on players this summer, had wanted to start work by now with completion of the new stadium by summer 2021.
However, as we revealed in June, the club's move has been delayed until the end of the 2018/19 season at the earliest.
The team is expected to play its home games at Wembley stadium while work is carried out.
The scheme has also been given a green light by Mayor Sadiq Khan, following following the approval granted by H &F Council's Planning and Development Control committee on 11 January.
You can read the details of the council's decision here.
The club is hoping to demolish the current stadium along with all the other buildings on the site including flats, hotels and health club and build a new stadium on the existing Stamford Bridge site which will hold 60,000 spectators instead of the current total of 41,500 and include an elevated walkway over the District and West London railway lines.
The stadium has been designed by architects by Herzog & de Meuron, who also designed the Beijing Olympic Stadium and is expected to cost owner Roman Abramovich upwards of £500 million.
On its website, Chelsea FC said: "This is the latest significant step toward redevelopment of the stadium and the delivery of the extensive local community programme.
"Further steps lie ahead, both during and after the planning process, before construction work can commence.
"We continue to collaborate with all stakeholders and will keep you informed of progress made.
"We would like to acknowledge all residents, businesses and other parties locally who are engaging with us during the process."
The demolition and and building works could begin in the summer of 2018 and are scheduled to last three years with the new stadium open to the public by 2021.
Matches are expected to be moved to a temporary home during the building works, with Wembley Stadium reportedly the most likely option.
The club's planning application, which was slightly revised in August 2016, is as follows:
Demolition of existing stadium and buildings within Stamford Bridge Grounds and construction of a new 60,000 capacity football stadium (Class D2) with ancillary stadium-related uses including a Combined Heat and Power (CHP) plant, Club shop, kiosks and museum; restaurant/café (Class A3); together with the construction of a Decking Platform over the District Line railway to the north-west and a Decking Platform over the Southern mainline railway to the east; external concourse areas; associated excavation works; new pedestrian access from Fulham Broadway Station and Fulham Road; new vehicular access via Wansdown Place; car parking; landscaping and related works. (‘Amended Proposed Development’).
You can read the full application and hundreds of supporting documents here.
January 11 , 2017
