Dave McIntyre/West London Sport
QPR confirm Old Oak regeneration project
QPR
have unveiled their plans for the total transformation of the Old Oak
area, which will include a 40,000-capacity stadium the club hope to move
to in 2018.
They made the announcement after support from all
the major bodies required – the Greater London Authority (GLA), relevant
local authorities, Network Rail and the influential Genesis Housing
Group – was confirmed.
Titled ‘New Queens Park’, the project
involves a Canary Wharf-style regeneration of a huge area of west London
– the type of which has always been a key motivation for QPR’s
Malaysian owners, fronted by chairman Tony Fernandes.
Rangers’
announcement comes after many months of discussions with the GLA – who
are expected to publicly back the proposals on Friday – and the boroughs
of Hammersmith & Fulham, Brent and Ealing.
About 24,000 new homes are likely to be built as part of the regeneration and the club say at least 50,000 jobs will be created.
QPR chairman Tony Fernandes
The project is crucial to Fernandes’ plans
Loftus
Road, Rangers’ home for most of the last century, will be turned into
flats as part of a revamp of the area that includes the White City
Estate.
Fernandes said: “Loftus Road is – and always will be –
a special place for the club and our supporters, but we need more than
an 18,000 capacity.
“With no option of expanding here, we have to
look elsewhere and we welcome the Mayor’s and Hammersmith & Fulham
Council’s commitment to regenerate the area, which includes an option
to develop a new stadium at Old Oak as a key catalyst to bring forward
redevelopment, cementing our future in this part of west London.
“Not
only will this give us a top-quality stadium to cater for QPR’s needs
as the club progresses and grows over the years ahead, but we are very
excited about being the driving force behind creating one of the best
new urban places in the world.
“This will be the catalyst for the
regeneration of a forgotten area – ultimately bringing new transport,
24,000 homes and at least 50,000 jobs.
“It will create a vibrant
new destination in London, boosting local businesses, attracting new
visitors and tourism and creating a thriving community.”
QPR have
partnered with Stadium Capital Developments (SCD) and entered into
exclusive land arrangements with Network Rail and other landowners who
control major parts of Old Oak.
A letter of collaboration – a
formal letter of intent – has been drawn up, with all parties affirming
to press ahead with the project as quickly as possible.
Loftus Road
Loftus Road will be turned into flats
The club expect to seek formal planning
permission towards the end of next year or early in 2015, with a view
to moving to the new complex for the start of the 2018-2019 season.
Club
chief executive Philip Beard said: “We look forward to working with the
Mayor and local authorities and we will, of course, be consulting our
loyal and passionate supporters, as well as the local community, on our
exciting plans early next year.
“Loftus Road is renowned for its
atmosphere and with the help of our supporters, replicating that at our
new stadium will be one of our top priorities.”
The
Fernandes-led regime’s plan to build a commercial, housing and leisure
hub has always largely hinged on the successful implementation of
Crossrail and HS2, the planned high-speed railway that is set to go
through the area.
The two lines are likely to converge at Old
Oak and London Mayor Boris Johnson recently declared that transforming
it into a world-class city quarter - a so-called Mini Manhattan – was a
priority.
The HS2 Growth Taskforce is meeting on Friday to
discuss the issue and its chair, Lord Deighton, said: “We welcome QPR
and Stadium Capital Development’s commitment to the regeneration plan at
Old Oak.
“Delivering modern transport infrastructure such as HS2
and Crossrail can be a catalyst for regeneration in London. The
government looks forward to working with key stakeholders on this.”
And
David Biggs, property director at Network Rail, said: “We are pleased
to be involved and able to support this exciting regeneration project
along with QPR and SCD to unlock the potential of this challenging,
railway-dominated site.”
John Carleton, executive director of
markets and portfolio at Genesis, said: “We are very pleased to be
involved in this exciting regeneration project.” West London Sport
Dave McIntyre/West London Sport
The Old Oak project that would totally transform the face of QPR
QPR chairman Tony Fernandes
13/12/2013
By David McIntyre
The
building of a hugely lucrative Canary Wharf-style commercial hub, that
would include an entertainment complex in which a 40,000-capacity
stadium for QPR is built, has always been a key motivation behind the
current board’s acquisition of the club.
It would establish Rangers’ Malaysian owners, fronted by chairman Tony Fernandes, as major players in London and beyond.
Eyebrows
have been raised at the losses QPR have incurred during Fernandes’
expensive and, so far, unsuccessful reign. And there has been
speculation about the long-term state of the club’s finances, the
owners’ motivations and whether they would be tempted to jump ship
following relegation from the Premier League.
But although their
multi-million-pound outlay seems staggering on the face of it, those
losses would be dwarfed by the potential windfall from a regenerated Old
Oak.
QPR hope to move in 2018
Committed? In it for the long term? You bet – for reasons outlined in a West London Sport article back in April.
So
what happens now? Here are some answers to a few of the questions that
are bound to be on the lips of QPR fans at this potentially momentous
time in the club’s history.
Why have QPR suddenly made this announcement now?
A
cynic might suggest that neighbours Brentford recently being given the
green light for a new stadium bigger than Loftus Road put the ball
firmly in Rangers’ court. In truth, the club moved suddenly because,
after months of discussions with relevant bodies, crucial pieces of the
jigsaw appear to have fallen into place in a short period of time.
The
last of various key stakeholders in the project came on board and QPR
also moved swiftly because it seems the Greater London Authority plan to
make a related announcement.
What is a letter of collaboration?
It’s
a formal letter of intent and essentially means that various important
groups, such as the GLA and the boroughs of Hammersmith &
Fulham, Ealing and Brent are on board.
When do QPR expect to move to the new ground?
Planning
permission is expected to be formally sought towards the end of next
year or early in 2015 with a view to the club moving to Old Oak for the
start of the 2018-2019 season.
Loftus Road
Loftus Road will be turned into flats
What will happen to Loftus Road?
Current plans will see it turned into flats as part of a revamp of the area which includes the White City Estate.
Who are Stadium Capital Developments ?
SCD
is run by Antony Spencer, an entrepreneur behind Arsenal’s move to the
Emirates Stadium. SCD is an associated company of Stadium Capital
Holdings (www.stadiumcapitalholdings.co.uk)
Who else is involved?
There are various groups involved in the project. They include:
Farrells,
who have offices in London, Hong Kong and Shanghai and have worked on
projects such as Earls Court and the Royal Albert Dock. The architects
have also been active in Asia, most notably in the completion of a
100-storey, 440-metre tower in Shenzhen – the tallest building ever
designed by a British architect – as well as the M+ Museum in Hong Kong,
Incheon Airport in Seoul, and Beijing and Guangzhou high-speed rail
stations in China.
Populous, a sports and entertainment
architecture practice which has been involved in the design of various
sporting and entertainment venues, including London’s Olympic Stadium,
the Sochi 2014 Fisht Stadium, Wembley, the Emirates Stadium, Soccer
City, the O2 Arena and the redevelopment and roof of the Centre Court at
Wimbledon.
Savills, who are advising on planning. Savills
Planning’s previous projects include the Emirates Stadium, the Olympic
Stadium, Stadium MK and expansions of The Oval and Lord’s. They have
also been consulted by Tottenham and Everton about proposed new
stadiums.
Will QPR fill a 40,000-capacity stadium?
This is likely to be the key question for many – and it arguably misses the whole point of this radical re-branding of QPR.
Fernandes
is a hugely influential, indeed inspirational, figure throughout large
parts of Asia, where Premier League football is already massively
popular. Rangers, if established in the top flight and with high-profile
players from around the world, could be of global interest and a
stadium offering Premier League football in London could be a haven for
fans visiting the UK. There would also be ample room for away fans when
some of the biggest, most well-supported clubs visit.
So those
who wonder how QPR, with a relatively modest fan-base, could fill a
40,000-capacity stadium perhaps need to look at the bigger picture.
English football is changing and QPR will certainly change beyond
recognition, in its character and make-up, if the owners have their way.
And with the west London landscape also changing, things are falling
perfectly into place for Fernandes, who also enjoys the unwavering
support and trust of a clear majority of fans.
Will QPR still own its own stadium?
This
is another potentially key issue. The club know they could could face
some backlash from even an overwhelmingly pro-Fernandes fan-base if
their answer on this isn’t seen as satisfactory. The current position is
that the stadium will indeed be owned by QPR Holdings, the company
which owns the club. QPR Holdings is owned by the club’s shareholders. West London Sport
SKY
Sky Bet Championship: QPR announce plans for new 40,000-capacity stadium
Last Updated: 13/12/13 5:30pm
QPR are hoping to build a new 40,000-capacity stadium as part of an ambitious project at Old Oak in west London.
Rs
chairman Tony Fernandes revealed plans to move the club from Loftus
Road as there is "no option of expanding" at their present home.
The
new stadium would be built as part of a "major regeneration" of the Old
Oak area, with plans for the creation of a residential and commercial
precinct larger than Canary Wharf.
QPR first used Loftus Road in
1917 and a proposed move is likely to spark a backlash from some fans,
but Fernandes believes the project would cement the club's place in west
London.
He told Sky Sports News: "It was something that was at
the forefront of my mind when I came in. People thought we were taking a
step backwards when we got relegated. But this is a long-term project -
we are all very committed as shareholders.
"We have been looking
around - despite the problems we had on the pitch - to look for a
stadium because we think that Loftus Road is unsustainable in the long
term. We were extremely lucky that we found this wonderful piece of land
not far from Loftus Road.
"We have been looking around - despite
the problems we had on the pitch - to look for a stadium because we
think that Loftus Road is unsustainable in the long term. We were
extremely lucky that we found this wonderful piece of land not far from
Loftus Road."
Tony Fernandes
"It's a huge £5billion
development. QPR has been a very community-focused club. We now have the
ability to build a nice township which would benefit many of our fans,
and to build many business and leisure facilities. It's fantastic that
we are able to build a stadium as a centrepiece and also help regenerate
a part of west London."
Fernandes is confident that the club can fill the stadium when it is built, provided they have success on the pitch.
"I
come from a business which is about putting bums on seats," he said. "I
started with two planes and now we have 150. If we get the right
product, we are in a wonderful part of London and the transport
infrastructure that the government has got planned will only enhance
connectivity to QPR.
"If Harry (Redknapp) produces a good team,
which it looks like there is every chance he will, I believe we can fill
that stadium."
London Mayor Boris Johnson recently announced
that turning Old Oak into a new world-class city quarter was one of his
main regeneration priorities.
QPR's chief executive Phillip Beard
said: "We look forward to working with the Mayor and local authorities
and we will, of course, be consulting our loyal and passionate
supporters, as well as the local community, on our exciting plans early
next year.
"We will look to build a stadium QPR fans and local residents can be proud of.
"Loftus
Road is renowned for its atmosphere and with the help of our
supporters, replicating that at our new stadium will be one of our top
priorities." SKY
INSIDE HOUSING
A new football stadium will be the ‘catalyst’ for the development of 24,000 new homes, Boris Johnson has said.
Queens
Park Rangers today announced plans for a 40,000-home stadium which will
be built as part of the Old Oak Common regeneration project
The
195 acre, semi-industrial site between Harlesden and Acton, currently
one of the most deprived parts of the capital, is planned to become a
thriving new district with a mix of affordable and market-priced housing
and up to 50,000 new jobs.
Additionally, developers envisage
that Old Oak will become the King’s Cross of west London, with plans to
build a ‘super hub’ High Speed 2 and Crossrail station in the area by
2026.
The proposed station will be the same size as Waterloo and
serve up to 250,000 passengers a day. It will link with Europe via the
Eurostar, with Paris just over two hours away.
Five of Britain’s
airports will be connected to the rail network for the first time
through the Old Oak interchange. Central London and Heathrow will be 10
minutes away, Birmingham will be 40 minutes direct from Old Oak and
Luton, Gatwick and City Airport will all be within 45 minutes.
The Mayor of London and Hammersmith & Fulham, Brent and Ealing Councils have collaborated on the project.
Nicholas
Botterill, leader of Hammersmith & Fulham Council, says: ‘This
creates unrivalled opportunities for both the public and private sectors
to create new jobs, homes and opportunities around what could become
the Kings Cross of west London.’
Boris Johnson, the Mayor of
London, is looking to set up a Mayoral Development Corporation for Old
Oak to maximise the benefits of the scheme. This will mirror the work of
London Legacy Development Corporation which leads the post-Olympic
regeneration of Stratford.
Mr Johnson said: ‘As well as making
Old Oak Common, Britain’s best connected railway station, the scheme
would create tens of thousands of new homes and jobs, schools, open
spaces, shops and leisure facilities in an area crying out for
improvement.’ INSIDE HOUSING
Some more info on the architects:
A new Populous-designed 40,000-seat stadium for QPR football club is at the heart of plans to regenerate London’s Old Oak area
The
stadium will be the centrepiece of the ‘New Queens Park’ regeneration
scheme; a 195-acre, semi-industrial site between Harlesden and Acton in
west London that has been masterplanned by Farrells.
The stadium
and and its surrounding development is being driven by a partnership
between QPR and Stadium Capital Developments (SCD), the same outfit that
led the development of Arsenal’s Emirates stadium and the
transformation of the surrounding area.
Also part of the design
team is CZWG Architects which has been signed up to ‘advise on
architecture’ and also to convert QPR’s existing ground at Loftus Road
in west London. A spokesman for the scheme also promised: ‘…there will
be more architects working on this scheme.’
Farrells had
previously worked up a masterplan that included 13,000-home and new
transport hub for the area but the newly revealed plans featuring the
stadium boasts 24,000 homes.’
SCD founder Antony Spencer said:
‘We know we still have a long way to go in dealing with the planning,
infrastructure funding challenges and business relocations but we are
now in a position to forge ahead as we have secured strategic land
holdings in excess of 100 acres.
‘We are confident of securing a planning permission by early 2015 and starting development shortly afterwards,’ he added.
Chris
Lee, senior principal and director at Populous, said: ‘We have seen how
sport has the power to bring communities together, and stadiums are one
of the most important buildings a community can own.
There is no
doubt that the new development will become a new destination in which
sport and entertainment will be an essential part.’ Architects Journal
EC Harris
EC Harris named as part of team to support new QPR stadium
13 December 2013
Queens
Park Rangers Football Club has announced that EC Harris will provide
project management and cost consultancy on their plans for a new 40,000
seater stadium in Old Oak.
The stadium plans are part of a major
regeneration project in the Old Oak area in West London, which has the
provisional title of ‘New Queens Park’. The project will be a catalyst
in bringing the creation of a residential and commercial area that will
ultimately generate 50,000 jobs and 24,000 new homes.
The
master-plan is being developed by Antony Spencer (Stadium Capital
Developments) and Sir Terry Farrell, who will need to work closely with
the public and private sector bodies, such as TfL and Network Rail to
enable the necessary infrastructure requirements. EC Harris will be
working alongside Farrells, Populous, Anthony Green & Spencer,
Savills and CZWG Architects in order to support Queens Park Rangers.
Paul Mitchell, Head of Sports Stadia Development at EC Harris commented:
“This
scheme represents another landmark in our association with major sports
venue projects in London. Following on from our involvement in
Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium, the London 2012 Olympic Stadium and our
current work with Tottenham Hotspur FC, this appointment underlines our
market leading position in this sector. We are delighted to be able to
support QPR in fulfilling their ambitions for a 40,000 seater stadium
that will underpin their future ambitions.”
Mark Farmer, Head of Residential at EC Harris also commented:
“EC
Harris is proud to be involved with QPR FC in this scheme and we
believe this is a reflection of our varied built asset skillsets
spanning not only residential led regeneration and complex
infrastructure delivery but world leading sports stadia expertise. This
powerful combination puts us in a strong position to help shape a viable
and sustainable master plan which will not only deliver a fitting new
venue for Queens Park Rangers FC but will be set in the context of
delivering much needed infrastructure improvements and new homes that
London so demands on one of the last major regeneration opportunity
sites in London.”
EC Harris has major sports venue experience
including Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium (Arsenal FC), Everton, Tottenham
Hotspur and the 2012 Olympic Stadium, as well as Cheltenham, Aintree and
Epsom racecourses.
-ends-
For further press information please contact:
Jack Turnpenny
Corporate Communications Assistant EC Harris
Telegraph: An Open Letter
Queens Park Rangers supporter Thom Gibbs' open letter to chairman Tony Fernandes over his stadium plans
Having
attended games at Loftus Road for 23 years Telegraph Sport's Thom Gibbs
writes to QPR chairman Tony Fernandes over his stadium plans warning
against a mooted move
Queens Park Rangers supporter Thom Gibbs' open letter to chairman Tony Fernandes over his stadium plans
By Thom Gibbs
Dear Tony,
How are you? I am fine. I do hope your airline is well. Sorry about the Formula One season. Maybe next year, eh?
I
write after your plans for a new 40,000-seater Queens Park Rangers
stadium were unveiled on Thursday night. Congratulations, those are some
lovely drawings.
As a QPR supporter of 23 years I applaud your
ambition and am grateful for the gigantic amount of money you've already
spent on our club. But I urge you to proceed with caution in this
endeavour.
After a decade of decline, English football came
roaring back on a tide of cash and European participation in the 1990s.
With the game ascending and hooliganism in remission, a spate of new
stadiums were built. They are almost all dreadful.
Middlesbrough,
Derby, Southampton, Cardiff, Leicester, Reading and Coventry built
grounds which are flawed, interchangeable, and only identifiable as
their own by the colour of the seats. Coventry's was such a failure that
they're now playing at the equally grim Sixfields (built 1994), 33
miles away in Northampton.
The anonymous bowls that defined this
new era suffer from a uniformly pallid atmosphere, a direct consequence
of the distance between the front row of spectators and the pitch.
Loftus Road is an unsustainable long-term home for QPR, but it is
wonderfully enclosed, intimate and one of the few remaining stadiums in
the country where a raucous atmosphere can be generated with as few as
13,000 spectators.
Building a different kind of new stadium
that's geared towards QPR fans being able to help the club win football
matches should be a challenge for your architects, not an obstacle to be
swerved with another conservative design.
QPR must avoid the
divide between corporate guests and the loyal majority whose budget only
stretches to cheaper seats. The uninterrupted tier of expensive seats
in the middle of Arsenal's new ground saps noise from a once-loud set of
supporters.
The proposed capacity of the new stadium is 40,000,
nearly 4,000 more seats than Tottenham's White Hart Lane. In the past 50
years the highest average attendance posted by QPR was 23,850 in
1975/76, the season we finished second in the top flight. Last season,
again in the top flight although not quite as successful, it was just
17,779, not quite hitting the meagre capacity of 18,360 every week.
You
have made encouraging noises about prioritising affordable tickets, and
harnessing the support of the new community around the Old Oak
development. But to assume the people living next door will all want to
watch football, or even want to watch QPR, is to wilfully ignore the
disturbing number of children wearing Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester
United shirts around Shepherd's Bush on a match day.
To regularly
fill a stadium as large as is planned, QPR would need to be performing
spectacularly above their historic level for a sustained period. This
isn't out of the question in shorter spells, but no club in English
football has ever transcended its status so violently that it is able to
attract more than double its established number of fans in the
long-term.
What will a cavernous 40,000-capacity ground be like
in the wholly possible event that we are playing at our current level in
the Championship? Cold, quiet, and not a pleasant place to be.
I
gently recommend that you approach your plans for capacity like you're
adding salt to a recipe. You can always add some more later if it's
required, but if you put too much in now you're going to end up with
something that tastes horrible. I would also gently recommend that you
don't attempt to taste this, or any other stadium.
Remember that
what matters to match-attending football supporters is their
relationship with their club, the rituals around going to see them play,
and a sense of community. You've got the chance to build something
which serves QPR supporters as well in these ways as Loftus Road. Good
luck!
Yours sincerely,
Thom Gibbs - TELEGRAPH
www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/queens-park-rangers/10515725/Queens-Park-Rangers-supporter-Thom-Gibbs-open-letter-to-chairman-Tony-Fernandes-over-his-stadium-plans.html
THE TIMES
Tony
Fernandes has revealed Queens Park Rangers’ plans for a new
40,000-capacity stadium at the heart of the most ambitious development
attempted by an English football club.
The new ground would be part
of a vast £10 billion regeneration over hundreds of acres of West
London, with Fernandes predicting that the project can turn the Sky Bet
Championship club into an established force in the Barclays Premier
League.
“This isn’t just building a stadium but virtually a whole new
community,” Fernandes told The Times. “The football club gives us the
anchor, the huge number of eyeballs which come with the attention of
being in the Premier League. It is a huge project and the stadium gives
it focus and impetus.”
QPR have already started investing in land on
the Old Oak Common site, which is just over a mile north of Loftus Road,
the club’s home for almost a century.
They have made a reported bid
of £21 million for a site close by, have an agreement in place with
Network Rail for large tracts of land and are ready to put £15 million
into securing outline planning permission. The £200 million for stadium
construction is a fraction of the overall cost, but Fernandes insists
that the club will benefit long term from doubling the capacity and some
fans could even enjoy cheaper tickets.
Fernandes has made his
estimated fortune of almost £400 million through transforming AirAsia.
“I feel we can sell 40,000 seats because we are building new homes next
door,” he said. “I’m a big believer in flexible pricing and it’s one of
my dreams with a better stadium, and London’s corporate hospitality, to
reduce the cost of some seats.”
Fernandes and his partners, including
Lakshmi Mittal, the billionaire Indian steel magnate who owns a third
of QPR, are seeking to draw in global investors for the site, which
could also include 24,000 new homes, offices and an indoor arena .
Boris
Johnson, the Mayor of London, gave his backing to the project in the
hope of also pushing through proposals for a new rail hub, Old Oak
Common station, which would link Crossrail with the troubled HS2. The
Mayor said that the new hub had the potential to spark regeneration “on a
scale not seen since the Olympics transformed Stratford”.
QPR have
partnerships with local councils and the Greater London Authority, the
biggest hurdle being securing hundreds of millions of pounds in
government funding to improve infrastructure — with that
INDEPENDENT
Glenn Moore: Tony Fernandes will need new fans for bold move
Saturday 14 December 2013
It
has happened. On 9 January 1932 41,097 watched Queen’s Park Rangers
play Leeds United in an FA Cup third-round tie. That must be the latent
support Tony Fernandes hopes to tap into with the new 40,000-seat
stadium proposed for Old Oak Common.
Having transformed Air
Asia from a failing company with $11m debt and two ageing Boeings into a
successful 132-plane operation, Fernandes has earned the right to have
his dreams respected. But turning QPR into a club capable of filling a
40,000 stadium is going to take a generation of success.
When
citing record club attendances it is customary to suggest that fans were
“packed in”, but there was plenty of room on the White City terraces to
watch QPR win 3-1 81 years ago. At the time the Olympic venue was
pulling in 90,000 crowds to watch boxing.
QPR, meanwhile, were
averaging 13,000 in the Third Division South. That figure is QPR’s
historical average, roughly on a par with Huddersfield and Bristol City.
Rangers soon gave up on White City and, aside from another
poorly-attended season three decades on, have stayed at Loftus Road,
their main home since 1917. Their best season was 1976-77 when Dave
Sexton’s superb team of Stan Bowles, Gerry Francis et al attracted
average gates of 24,000.
Fernandes is right to argue that Loftus
Road, now constricted to 18,439 often cramped seats, is too small to
sustain a Premier League club, especially with Financial Fair Play
restricting owner subsidies. But it has taken Fulham (historically a
marginally larger club) 12 years in the top flight, and a European final
to edge their gates up to 25,000. Only now are they planning to expand
to 30,000.
In a sane world Fulham and QPR, instead of planning
separate developments, would investigate ground-sharing. It happens
overseas, but given the antipathy shown in Bristol and on Merseyside it
appears to be a non-starter in England.
So Fernandes plunges into
a £200m gamble on a continuing boom in English football, and a surge in
popularity for QPR. Realistically, as with West Ham’s move to the
Olympic Stadium, the only way he can fill the ground is with cheap
tickets and the hope of ancillary income from merchandising and
catering. If that allows those excluded by modern prices a chance to see
live football, good luck to him. He will need it. Independent
