Spending £48 million on two new parks at Aberdeen beach will “fail to deliver meaningful community benefit,” it’s been claimed – without a new Dons stadium to go with them.
Early preparatory work has begun on the Beach Boulevard before gas lines and other underground infrastructure is moved to make way for the facelift.
And while “regular talks” between Aberdeen City Council and Aberdeen FC are now in the diary, city leaders have been urged to do more.
For the majority of 2023, the two organisations appeared to be at stalemate over Dons calls for an – undefined – contribution from the city towards the Pittodrie replacement.
In October 2022, the new Dons ground was priced up at £80m.
But Aberdeen and Grampian Chamber of Commerce forecast it would add an extra £20m a year to the city economy.
And club chairman Dave Cormack has promised vast community benefit too – and he pointed to various football clubs around the world as inspiration.
But it took most of 2023 before he was able to meet council high ups.
Aberdeen FC and council chiefs meeting up on the regular
At a meeting of the Aberdeen finance committee on Wednesday, council chief commercial officer Craig Innes said: “Myself and the co-leaders have met with the football club since [that first meeting in October].
“And I have met with the football club on my own as well.
“The meetings I have with the football club are ongoing and we will look to meet again with the chairman of the football club and the two co-leaders quite shortly.
“It will probably be within the next month.”
But now Labour is urging the SNP and Lib Dems running the local authority to do more to “actively promote” the beachfront Aberdeen FC stadium plans.
Group leader M Tauqeer Malik claimed: “Without [it], any proposals contained within the beach masterplan will fail to deliver meaningful community benefit.”
He later added: “The new football stadium is crucial for our city centre and beach masterplan.
“We are not saying the council should pay for the stadium.
“We are saying the we should work with the football club and business to deliver it.
“Eventually you will agree with us – please think again.”
What was the latest Aberdeen FC beachfront stadium argument about?
What exactly Mr Malik was urging the SNP and Liberal Democrats to think again on was not clear.
Their administration is agreed on working with Aberdeen FC on new sports facilities and a stadium at the beach.
Lib Dem councillor Martin Greig said he was “somewhat puzzled” by Labour “putting so much weight on one element of a very wide and strategic proposal and vision for the beachfront.”
In “not saying the council should pay for it”, Labour appears to be aligned with the administration there too.
The SNP and Lib Dems agreed the replacement ground would not be built using taxpayer cash “except where collaborative working is mutually beneficial”.
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Aberdeen FC beachfront stadium ‘an option on the table’
“The idea that anything is changing because we are not agreeing with you is simply false,” SNP finance convener Alex McLellan told Mr Malik as he rubber-stamped the official recommendations.
“And it’s no surprise that this partnership is committed to working with partners, including Aberdeen FC, to deliver the beach masterplan.
“It’s quite correct, as you said, that we should not pay for a football stadium at the beach.
“If Aberdeen FC wants a football stadium there, that is an option on the table.
“A lot of the illustrations and documents from the council show that as a possibility – and the co-leaders meet the football club on a regular basis now.”
Council urged to think about traffic to potential stadium at ‘at phases’ of Aberdeen beach masterplan
Mr McLellan predicted a “massive positive impact” that the first phase of the beach work, which includes the events park and playpark on the Boulevard.
It also includes improvements to paths and viewing platforms to be built on Broadhill.
But the lack of mention of “football stadium” in Mr Innes’ briefing for councillors provided room for speculation.
Labour councillor Simon Watson complained there was no apparent schedule for updates on negotiations on the planned Aberdeen FC beach stadium.
“It could be well over a year away,” he said.
Meanwhile, with 20,000 people potentially attending the beach for football matches and ice hockey fixtures “every fortnight”, incoming Conservative group leader Rick Brooks urged planners to be mindful of transport issues.
While the wrecking ball looms for the Beach Leisure Centre, the adjacent Linx ice arena will remain.
Mr Brooks warned: “All phases of the beach masterplan must take into consideration access, egress, transport, accessibility and increased traffic across Aberdeen.”
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