No fun living next to a football club (From Basingstoke Gazette)

No fun living next to a football club

11:12am Friday 3rd February 2012 in Letters

Sir.–Following your report on the proposal to move Basingstoke Football Club’s ground to Eastrop I would like to add my comments to this matter.

Having once lived quite close to a football ground, I have no desire to repeat the experience and would never volunteer to move next to such an establishment.

For those not so ‘fortunate’ to share my experience, might I point out that having a local football ground next to a residential area is both noisy and restricting. On match days, the immediate vicinity can become a raucous no-go area. The PA system and lighting are also very unsettling and damaging to a previously quiet environment.

I believe the site is also totally unsuitable when you consider that the proposed parking is for just 250 cars. This would be wholly inadequate to service the current Camrose crowd of 600.

The traffic problem alone is just one negative aspect to these plans. I feel particularly sad for the people living in the Crossborough Hill area – this area has some of the most highly valued and desirable residential housing in the town. These people will soon have the dubious pleasure of a football ground in their back yard. Roll on the lucrative pop concerts!

As the above is totally negative, I have a positive proposal of my own for a site for the football club...

I have noted much debate on the £10million spent by the council on the Manydown land some years ago, a site recently deemed unsuitable for residential development.

Might I suggest that this site, or part of it, would make an excellent venue for a football ground and provide room for future expansion in the mix, as and when the club grows in stature? This would largely replicate the relatively recent example of the move of Reading Football Club to an out-of-town site and, therefore, not upset so many local people in the process. Simple!

–David Dry, Allnutt Avenue, Basingstoke.