Everton must still find £30m to fund dreams of new stadium
Everton FC must still find £30m to fund their dreams of a new stadium, the ECHO understands.
The news came as
Liverpool council ruled out bankrolling the Goodison Park replacement.
The Toffees have seen previous moves to switch from their 121-year-old home hampered.
A well-placed source told the ECHO the club still needs to find around £30m – on top of any cash already secured – to make the new ground a reality.
But the source described this shortfall as “not insurmountable”.
The club's preferred site is believed to be land on the 130-acre Walton Hall Park. It is thought houses will be built alongside the new stadium to help shore up the project financially.
James Asquith, from the Everton FC Shareholders’ Association, said: “The club have to be fairly tight-lipped about these things and we understand that causes frustration. We are keen to see progress.
“One option to raise additional money is to sell more shares in the club. The shareholders are entitled to vote to do that.
“Another option is to downgrade whatever stadium is being planned.
“If you can't afford a five-bedroom house with a pool and three-car garage then you go for a three-bedroom house with a one-car garage instead.”
He described the club's position as a “difficult needle to thread”, but added: “People will ask difficult questions and snipe from the sidelines but ultimately we all want what's best for the club.”
Liverpool council issued a statement saying it is willing to fund improvements to go alongside any new Everton stadium, similar to the redevelopment projects around Anfield.
But the authority is clear it will not pay for the new ground – a model used in Manchester where the city council owns the Ethihad Stadium and leases it to Manchester City.
The Liverpool council statement said: “As with all large-scale regeneration projects with the potential to create jobs and investment in Liverpool, the city council will look at ways it can support the wider regeneration scheme but no firm options have been developed in terms of how or where this will take shape.
“This work is ongoing and we will announce the details of the location and support we will be offering once this has been further developed.
“However, we must stress that the city council is clearly not in a position to fund the costs of a new stadium.
“Any investment the council makes would be in a wider regeneration scheme, subject to a sound financial and economic rationale for doing so.”
It is thought Liverpool council could agree to fund improvements to roads, housing and transport in the area around any new stadium.
An Everton club spokesman declined to comment on the £30m funding shortage figure.
Proposals for a new 55,000-seat Everton ground in Kings Dock were rejected more than 10 years ago, then the Government vetoed plans for a Goodison Park replacement in Kirkby in 2009
