Opponents of a new stadium in the “green heart” of Bath are urging those concerned about the council’s support for the plans to write to the Secretary of State, Steve Reed.
How the stadium could look | Image © Stadium for Bath / Bath Rugby
It follows Bath & North East Somerset Council’s planning committee’s decision this week to back Bath Rugby’s long-held ambition to build a permanent stadium at the Rec, as we reported on Wednesday, 17th September.
Planning permission has not yet been granted however, as the council needs to wait for “specific authorisation” from the government.
It is proposed that the stadium will be used for an increased number and wider range of rugby games, as well as for other events such as theatre and music events.
The existing capacity of the stadium is 14,500, and the plans propose an increase of 3,500 to 18,000 spectators, including hospitality boxes.
More than 5,400 representations were received for the new stadium proposals, 5,085 in support and 368 objecting.
The committee heard that there had been no objections to the final scheme from statutory consultees.
How the proposed stadium would look from above | Image © Bath Rugby
But following Wednesday’s meeting, the Save Our Rec group issued a press release, saying the planning committee’s decision will have a “negative impact on every aspect of the city’s heritage, environment and economy”.
Jay Risbridger, from the campaign, said: “It beggars belief that anyone thinks that plonking a stadium in the green heart of a heritage city will not wreck its heritage status and undermine tourism that are the foundations of the local economy.”
The press release said that support for a stadium by the Liberal Democrat-controlled council “is completely contra to its own planning, transport, and heritage aims for the city”.
And it claimed the planning report was “flawed” and the decision had been pushed through at undue speed.
Green councillor for the Lambridge ward, Joanna Wright, is quoted as saying: “With this decision the council has given financial preference to a foreign-owned business over the environmental, commercial and heritage interests Bath as a whole.”
She urged people to write to Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government Steve Reed via the Action Network website.
Also quoted in the press release is Phillip Fawkner-Corbett, from the Friends of Bath Recreation Ground, saying: “Bath has a unique setting that along with its buildings, is the lifeblood of the city’s heritage.
“Instead, today we heard from the members of B&NES planning committee, who voted nine to one to approve the stadium, that rugby is the beating heart of Bath. This shameful attitude means this UNESCO World Heritage site will be lost to the demands of a privately-owned stadium.”
He added: “Promises have been made by successive councils to maintain the Recreation Ground in perpetuity as an open space for the people of Bath; these promises have been continually broken.”
Film-maker Ken Loach, who lives in the city, is also quoted, saying: “The promises to preserve the Recreation Ground from development have been broken repeatedly by the council.
“The stadium demanded by Bath Rugby, owned by Bahamas resident millionaire Bruce Craig, will have an enormous impact on the local ecology and environment as well as the unique heritage setting of the city.
“It sets a very dangerous precedent for community green spaces being grabbed and developed for the benefit of the ultra-wealthy.”
In their analysis of the proposals, B&NES Council planning officers said that the applicant, Arena 1865 Limited, is a UK registered company, and that together with Bath Rugby Limited and Bath Rugby Foundation, the charity that works with young people and people with disabilities across B&NES Somerset and Wiltshire, they comprise the ‘Stadium for Bath’ project group that will deliver the stadium project.
Bath Rugby Limited will operate the stadium during construction and post-completion.
The planning officers’ report said that the enlarged footprint of the stadium will reduce the existing open area of the Recreation Ground, resulting in a loss of approximately 5,000m2 of playing field.
It said the majority of the application site is owned by Bath Recreation Limited, a registered charity, with a small part of the land within the application red line boundary owned by the council.
Bath Rugby Limited leases the land on which the current stadium is located from Bath Recreation Limited. Originally granted in 1995 for a period of 75 years, there are also short-term leases for temporary structures such as the East Stand. The area and terms of the lease will need to be amended to enable the development of the new stadium.
The report said there were no objections to the final scheme for a new stadium from statutory consultees, which included ICOMOS (the International Council on Monuments and Sites), which works in close collaboration with UNESCO (the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) World Heritage Committee.
Council planning officers said they considered Bath’s Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) will be maintained.
Historic England, meanwhile, said the proposals were a successful result of many years of negotiations.
The plans also had the backing of Bath Business Improvement District (BID) with its chief executive Allison Herbert addressing the planning committee on Wednesday about the importance of Bath Rugby to the city’s economy.
