Heading into the Easter weekend games with Plymouth and Notts County we had it announced by Pompey the land adjacent to Fratton Park had been snapped up.
The building behind the North Stand was secured on a 30 year (plus) lease – all of this opens up the potential for Fratton to be redeveloped should Pompey decide to stay at the Park in the long-term?
Pompey have to continue making plans for the future with or without Michael Eisner’s takeover going through.
Mark Catlin told the News: ‘Whatever the outcome of the voting on the Michael Eisner offer of investment, the club carries on regardless and this is a vitally-important strategic acquisition of land adjacent to our current footprint.’
No immediate plans have been decided for the land.
Pompey’s chief executive continued: ‘We have not got anything specifically planned for this at the moment, but in the short term it gives us immediate breathing space.’
We’ll be ‘keeping our options open’ with that land, securing it is vital for the Blues though.
Catlin added: ‘Should the club take the route to stay at Fratton Park in the mid to long term, it will give us a lot more opportunity in the scope of what we can do at the stadium. It was for a six-figure sum and there has been no borrowing involved in the purchase of the property.’
This most definitely opens up the potential to work with Fratton, bringing it up to scratch – and expanding – without Pompey having the need to leave our home. Well, providing there’s funds available to this, which will always be the most difficult thing.
Eisner’s takeover would ‘probably’ give us our best chance of doing what we NEED to do on the stadium front… Remaining at Fratton would always be my first choice, as I’m sure it would most others too? This latest land development is another step in the direction of this happening, potentially anyway isn’t it?
PLAY UP POMPEY
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2016-17 Prediction League – April
Notts County (a) – Monday 17th April – click here.
Cambridge (h) – Saturday 22nd April – click here.
Mansfield (a) – Saturday 29th April – click here.
