SUFC: The Future SUFC up for sale

[Holy Joe]

I wonder what will become of the academy and community domes at FF.

And unless there is an agreement for the club to move to FF it makes it difficult for Ron to fulfil his planning conditions at FF. Not unsurmountable but would need new planning application there - probably delays that by a year or 2.

 

[NG_Shrimp]

Rons statement seems close to something reasonable, the devil will be in the detail and all that. I also do not read it as "FF is off the table" more that he is willing to have a deal in the shape of that outlined in his statement because it is now critical for the survival of the club. That doesn't preclude it from being discussed at a later date. It is this untangling of FF that makes his position more reasonable. I am in no position to know if the figures mentioned are reasonable or not.

Some have questioned what exactly does The Stadium encompass? The car park etc too. Its would appear that it does. The various colors and lines refer to rights of way and alterations to the original site (as far as I am aware).
The only thing im not 100% sure about are the flats on Victoria Ave shown in the yellow.

 

[Chairman Trigg]

With the North bank you could do standing below and sitting above, give the South to the away fans

Couldn't the North be extended over the roadway to double its size?
Shame the old rugby club and bus garage weren't snapped up in the past

 

[bazzashrimper]

The car park is part of the stadium - why would you specifically mention. If you sell your house you don't say and it comes with the driveway ? :-)

But your lawyer checks…

 

[dusterman]

There must dozens of fans who are handy on tools and other local businesses who’d give their time and even materials to support a short term refurb of the Hall, surely?

 

[Userorange]

There are some points being missed here.
1. FF is off the table. RH is for sale at £4.5 million, which includes the car park. Not leasehold, so there are no rental or ground rent payments.
2. The council will lose the 500 or so flats at RH, for which planning permission has been granted.
3. A verbal deal has been agreed between the two MPs and the council to replace those 500 flats with roughly the same number at FF because NO NEW STADIUM will be built there.
4. RH cannot be an attractive purchase proposition unless it is fully redeveloped. This is likely to mean a ground share at some stage, if only because building works are likely to make entry and exit hazardous. I don’t think the redevelopment can be done piecemeal because the pitch faces the wrong way for an increase in capacity to be feasible.

I am not an accountant but I think the terms are extremely fair, attractive even.
And nobody really wanted to have to tramp to FF to watch a football match.

Hang on. Has Ron played a blinder here?

 

[kentblues]

That statement is a "for sale" advert for the club

No sale is close if he's out there publicising the terms.

Simply Ron being Ron and making out he's the one trying to be the nice guy.

We are currently more ****ed than we appeared to be this morning.

TBH if no buyer (or buyers if that were ever the case) is urgently engaging on this offer then we never had anyone seriously interested in the first place. Except Kimura proved they were real by spending a large wedge on DD. And therefore....

 

[tommy tucker]

The deal seems reasonable and if the training ground is also purchased, and the 4g pitch installed, that will also bring in extra money.

We just have to see if Kimura are still interested now that FF is no longer on the table.

I couldn't give a toss about a stadium the may never get built Was it not said that Roots Hall can't be built on until a new stadium is built So the longer that drags on.How ever buys Roots Hall for 4.5 millions will get a good deal ..And the club survives

 

[C'mon you Shrimpers]

If FF is off the table we don't need the car park. What about the Cecil Jones dome and pitch. Probably no discussion needed now but certainly will in the future.

 

[Sherif H]

The pitch is elevated. If we lowered the pitch and moved it toward the north-east we would increase the size of the west and south stands.

Lowering the pitch would probably cost as much as redeveloping one of the stands unfortunately.

 

[Holy Joe]

Yes but the club would own that asset and receive that future value if they sold for development. The club would have the choice to sell for that full value and move elsewhere, or stay and develop. Its a city centre location.

Why would the club own Roots Hall?

 

[Sherif H]

There are some points being missed here.
1. FF is off the table. RH is for sale at £4.5 million, which includes the car park. Not leasehold, so there are no rental or ground rent payments.
2. The council will lose the 500 or so flats at RH, for which planning permission has been granted.
3. A verbal deal has been agreed between the two MPs and the council to replace those 500 flats with roughly the same number at FF because NO NEW STADIUM will be built there.
4. RH cannot be an attractive purchase proposition unless it is fully redeveloped. This is likely to mean a ground share at some stage, if only because building works are likely to make entry and exit hazardous. I don’t think the redevelopment can be done piecemeal because the pitch faces the wrong way for an increase in capacity to be feasible.

I am not an accountant but I think the terms are extremely fair, attractive even.
And nobody really wanted to have to tramp to FF to watch a football match.

If these points are correct, then this is, in my mind, the absolute best deal any party can hope for. If, in particular, the Roots Hall price includes all of the associated land, then that is a steal.

 

[kentblues]

There are some points being missed here.
1. FF is off the table. RH is for sale at £4.5 million, which includes the car park. Not leasehold, so there are no rental or ground rent payments.
2. The council will lose the 500 or so flats at RH, for which planning permission has been granted.
3. A verbal deal has been agreed between the two MPs and the council to replace those 500 flats with roughly the same number at FF because NO NEW STADIUM will be built there.
4. RH cannot be an attractive purchase proposition unless it is fully redeveloped. This is likely to mean a ground share at some stage, if only because building works are likely to make entry and exit hazardous. I don’t think the redevelopment can be done piecemeal because the pitch faces the wrong way for an increase in capacity to be feasible.

I am not an accountant but I think the terms are extremely fair, attractive even.
And nobody really wanted to have to tramp to FF to watch a football match.

Extremely fair and if 3. is true everyone wins. Re the bit in bold I think Sherrif has indicated that RH could developed stand by stand in a way that would nor neccesitate this.

 

[kentblues]

Why would the club own Roots Hall?

??

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

May I refer readers (viewers?) to the sale of SUFC: a chronology by Yorkshire Blue, posted in May and still up on the Zone:
March 17 - RM announced club up for sale
April 20 - an Investment Memorandum signed with interested parties.
May 24 - the Athletic break the news that Kimura are front runners.
June 1 - Matt Slater of Athletic: Ron accepts Kimura offer subject to contract.
There then followed weeks of optimistic speculation. Kimura have ambitious plans leading to a promotion asap. Plans that will thrill Blues fans. Possibly involvement of Ray Winstone. Possible involvement of Dwayne Johnson. Spud on the board. Repeated statements that the deal is “95 pct done”.

What the hell has happened?
Was all this correct at the time?
Did someone change their minds?
Was it all just wrong?
Does anyone have the answers?

What a bitter, bitter disappointment.

What happened is Kimura’s Those words are banned revealed that their assumptions were too optimistic. The club, the books, the stadium were all in a worse position then they envisaged and their sums no longer added up.

I suggest the Trust start looking at registering a new company at CH - perhaps SOUTHEND UNITED FOOTBALL CLUB 1906 LIMITED (THE)...

Companies can be easily purchased off the shelf and their name changed. This does not need to be planned in advance. There are far bigger issues that would need to be addressed such as what league we would play in, what ground we would play in.

Gould family deny rumours they are buying Southend United

THE Gould family have ruled themselves out of buying Southend United - as fans continue to fear for the future of the football club.

www.echo-news.co.uk

For what it is worth this only denies interest in buying SUFC rather than exploring a deal to invest in Ron’s property scheme for the non-stadium bit of Fossetts if Ron seeks outside investment.

 

[Sherif H]

Extremely fair and if 3. is true everyone wins. Re the bit in bold I think Sherrif has indicated that RH could developed stand by stand in a way that would nor neccesitate this.

I'll personally walk any potential buyers around Fratton Park to better understand how this redevelopment model is commensurate with that required at RH.

 

[Holy Joe]

??

You said the club would own the asset (I've presumed Roots Hall) and benefit from any uplift in value by developing? Have I got wrong end of stick?

 

[kentblues]

I'll personally walk any potential buyers around Fratton Park to better understand how this redevelopment model is commensurate with that required at RH.

Well Kimura aren't strangers to this site- hopefully they will be very keen to take you up on that offer.

 

[Mbof]

There must dozens of fans who are handy on tools and other local businesses who’d give their time and even materials to support a short term refurb of the Hall, surely?

DIY S.O.S anyone?

 

[Beefy]

There are some points being missed here.
1. FF is off the table. RH is for sale at £4.5 million, which includes the car park. Not leasehold, so there are no rental or ground rent payments.
2. The council will lose the 500 or so flats at RH, for which planning permission has been granted.
3. A verbal deal has been agreed between the two MPs and the council to replace those 500 flats with roughly the same number at FF because NO NEW STADIUM will be built there.
4. RH cannot be an attractive purchase proposition unless it is fully redeveloped. This is likely to mean a ground share at some stage, if only because building works are likely to make entry and exit hazardous. I don’t think the redevelopment can be done piecemeal because the pitch faces the wrong way for an increase in capacity to be feasible.

I am not an accountant but I think the terms are extremely fair, attractive even.
And nobody really wanted to have to tramp to FF to watch a football match.

I think the other point too is that buying the ground back doesn't mean the decision is made as to what the club's future has to be. Maybe you develop Roots Hall. Maybe you strike a deal with Ron for the stadium at Fossetts. Maybe there's another site somewhere.

But losing Roots Hall 25 years ago is what ultimately got us here. This club lost control of its destiny that day.