A campaign group has been formed to fight Aberdeen Football Club’s plans for a multimillion pound football stadium to the west of the city.
The No Kingsford Stadium Community Action Group is made up of locals from Westhill and Kingswells who are opposing the £40million stadium and training academy development which could be built between the two areas.
Residents across the north-east will be able to attend public consultations in the coming weeks to have their say on the stadium, community and sports campus and football academy plans for Kingsford.
Club chiefs had previously been in talks with the city council about a site at Loirston in the south of the city.
But the new vision for the stadium, community and sports campus and football academy plans for Kingsford, between Kingswells and Westhill, spells the end to those plans.
However, the campaign group has carried out a survey in their local area and claim it shows more than 70% of local residents are opposed to the project.
Angus Jamieson, a spokesman for the group said: “A stadium built on this site will see 20,000 people, nearly twice the population of Westhill, coming to the area regularly.
“Even considering the AWPR, the A944 is unable to cope with this level of traffic. It will also mean wide ranging parking restrictions across Westhill, as were proposed at Loirston.”
An Aberdeen Football Club spokesman said that the consultation events would be the time to raise any objections.
He said: “The consultation events over the coming weeks are an opportunity to share our vision for the development and listen to what interested parties have to say.
“This process will inform the submission of a planning application later this year. We appreciate that the project will attract a spectrum of views but believe there is a compelling case for the creation of community and training facilities and a new stadium in this location.
“The development will support the ambition of the club, the fans and AFC Community Trust in the work it does on promoting sport, community engagement, healthy lifestyles, and social inclusion.
“The opportunity is to create a significant sporting, community and social asset that benefits the north-east as a whole and at this time of economic transition the region needs projects of scale and ambition that will deliver long term benefits.”
