Stadium Plans Get Gold Approval

Last updated : 02 December 2004 By Brian Cartlidge

The Blues chairman is hoping that Birmingham City Council give the go-ahead to the Las Vegas Sands Group, one of America's biggest gambling companies, to build an all-purpose stadium on the 50-acre site that is currently Wheels Park go-kart track.

The plan is to build a stadium that would be the venue for major athletics meetings, cricket and pop concerts as well as becoming the new home for Blues' home fixtures.

"Birmingham is one of the great cities of Europe, and it has many cultural centres, but it does not have a great stadium and it should have," Gold has said.

"We are a city to be proud of and we have got to grasp the nettle.

"There are four options for us. We could do nothing. If you can survive on a 30,000 capacity without burdening yourself with debt - and we have no debt - then there is a case for that.

"You could rebuild the main stand at a cost of £12m to increase the capacity by five or six thousand - but they would be the most expensive seats in the Premiership.

"We could build a brand new 40,000-seater stadium on our own which I think, unless we received help, does not seem feasible.

"Then there is that fourth possibility that the city of Birmingham builds a stadium which we all share.

"Manchester has proven that it can be done with the City of Manchester Stadium where Manchester City play. I believe that a great city like Birmingham should have the same."