New pitch floodlights etc.

[Whoryer]

At the time I use to go to every home game and alot of away games, but I can't remember why either,so as Tony said must've been something to do with the pitch

[BeaverWatcher]

All seems rather rushed to me. Obviously by the time we got planning permission most of the companies who sort out artificial pitches were probably booked in. However we have decided to go ahead with it this summer. Most things I read say it will take a minimum 12 weeks. Which if it had started today that would have meant 28th August was 12 weeks away. I can’t see the league being happy with us switching too many fixtures so we’d have to find another ground to play at.
This could end up all very messy come August/September time.

I think that if it was just the pitch and the floodlights then work would have already started. With all the other work being planned maybe that is the hold up and that the club want to do some of those works before starting the pitch. I would guess that maybe the belief there was a lot of stuff that could have been done under permitted development and maybe the council are pushing back on some works the club wish to do.

A lot of the current buildings would be classed as 'temporary' (boardroom, club shop, outside toilets etc) and won't necessarily have gone through planning. If the new owners are trying to replace those with more permanent structures then this maybe where they are getting push back.

I'd also guess that they would want to have the asbestos removed before they lay the 3G pitch as you don't want to be removing a whole bunch of asbestos right next to your newly laid pitch.

I stuck my head through the gates on Sunday and it did look very forlorn, huge weeds and grasses all round the pitch and coming through the terraces.

[Les1949]

There is a comment in the Middlesex Chronicle in September 1981 which indicates that the pitch was 'unavailable for the first month of the season'. As the club looked after the pitch and during the summer months would have been seeding and watering (using a hosepipe), I would guess that there were problems in getting the grass to grow!

[Lord Elpus]

There is a comment in the Middlesex Chronicle in September 1981 which indicates that the pitch was 'unavailable for the first month of the season'. As the club looked after the pitch and during the summer months would have been seeding and watering (using a hosepipe), I would guess that there were problems in getting the grass to grow!

As an avid reader of the Chron sports pages at that time that does ring a bell. And doesn't that away friendly to East Ham United look nice, local and convenient...

[Jamie]

The big problem now is if the new 3G pitch had to be put off to next year, the current pitch has not been maintained or have the usual summer work done.

surely as a back up it makes sense to do basic maintenance of the grass, at least keeping it cut in case things go wrong with the plans for the 3G.

[Tony]

I guess we will continue to speculate about the right course of action to take but until the club makes known its plans probably best to wait and see. I suspect as BeaverWatcher said it is other planned work at the ground holding up the 3G and floodlights which have planning permission in place. I think the club is committed to the 3G so unlikely to defer into next year. Shareholders have just raised a substantial sum which must be earmarked to fund the works so guessing we are not far off work commencing.

[Shepperton Supporter]

It might be that the new work is replacing temporary building and the council are insisting of formal applications which might not have been initially anticipated.
Is this work that needs to be done before the pitch? Funding for the floodlights should have been met by grants as per Jacques comments at the supporters meeting at the end of the season before last.
My concern is that further delays in all this work coupled with little remedial work could leave us with severe penalties as we have a ground that don’t meet the standard for a club of our status.

[Tony]

I don’t see why that would be the case. We still have our ground grading in place and the proposed works will only enhance that.

[HamptonMad]

Well i hope we dont finish up on the Facebook page. Lost grounds.

[TW3 Beaver]

Nothing in today’s newsletter regarding ground development works.

Was hardly anything of interest in it.

[Mucky knees]

It should be called a fortnightly newsletter rather than a bi-weekly one of which has an ambiguous meaning..!

MK

[RogerB]

I don’t see why that would be the case. We still have our ground grading in place and the proposed works will only enhance that.

Apart from HM, is there anyone else with a a niggling feeling in the back of their mind wondering if there'll be a ground to grade or a team to support when next season starts?