Plans for a new stadium for Everton on Walton Hall Park have been abandoned, the third new stadium project that has collapsed following Kings Dock in 2003 and Destination Kirkby in 2009.
Everton confirmed their intention to build a new stadium in Walton Hall Park in 2014, with Bill Kenwright declaring;
“On my journey to our home games, as I pass Walton Hall Park, I inevitably think that I am only a minute away from our beloved Goodison. For several years now I’ve also thought, if only it was available for our new stadium, it ticks all the boxes.”
“It would fill me with great pride, it could be something very special for our city, the residents of North Liverpool and all Evertonians – a new home that goes beyond football and does what Everton does better than anyone else.
“Of course there’s enormous work to do – that again involves fixing a huge financial jigsaw – but we are certain it’s an opportunity we should pursue with great commitment, endeavour and ambition”.
However, with the arrival of Farhad Moshiri, Everton have abandoned their Walton Hall Park plans and will now look elsewhere;
A joint statement from Everton and Liverpool Council:
“Liverpool City Council and Everton Football Club can confirm they have been working together over recent months to investigate alternative plans for a new stadium for Everton Football Club.
“These new plans no longer focus on Walton Hall Park but on two other potential sites brownfield sites within the city boundary.
“The proposed scheme at Walton Hall Park was always an ambitious one. It was a regeneration scheme that relied heavily on retail investment into the site.
“Most of the current investment into retail is focused on city centres and larger district centres and not on out-of-town developments like this would have been.”
Mayor Joe Anderson:
“Most people will be aware that I did give a commitment to Everton to support a potential scheme at Walton Hall Park with the aim of regenerating the area and creating new jobs.
“However, through the work that the club and the council have done, we have concluded that effectively building a new village in North Liverpool with lots of retail space is a step too far in this current economic climate.
“On the subject of the park itself, I can now say that the park will remain a park and will be designated as such in our Local Plan which will be out for consultation this summer.”
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