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Sheffield - a city of White Elephants.
it *only* cost 20-odd million quid to build, and costs less than a million quid a year to run.
if it is/was a white elephant, it's only a medium-sized white elephant.
it's the trams that baffle me.
A pale hippo?
yeah, that's probably about right.
but, perhaps it's the kind of thing that [u]should[/u] be funded a little bit beyond cold rational analysis.
andnowi'mrambling: maybe it's a bit like the shipping forecast, it's publicly funded, but only used by a very small number of people, but a surprisinly large number of people have strong positive feelings about it.
I wonder if its a victim of the odd tax on visiting sports stars that's apparently keeping the stars away from the uk.
It's not the only sports facility in sheffield that's for the chop either. Stocksbridge leisure centre is also living on borrowed time.
Thanks again. Bankers.
I wonder if its a victim of the odd tax on visiting sports stars that's apparently keeping the stars away from the uk.
possibly though thats been lifted for this years diamond league events after everyones favourite Tory Olympian had a word in Gideon's ear....
More likely because there are fewer big athletics meets in the UK to justify it and no football team will ever use it again.
The Alexander stadium in Birmingham is a far better athletics venus and Crystal Palace also has better facilities and rumours are that if the Olympic Stadium does lose the running track, the new owners have to pay for the refurbishment of Crystal Palace to up its capacity.... however, if the Diamond League event sells out in July at the Olympic Stadium, it does lend weight to the argument to keep the running track in situ!
if there aren't enough people using it then the council need to be a bit smarter about getting people in there but lots of outdoor sporting facilities look very empty on a tuesday morning in February (which is when the bean counters visit)
Councils in the UK are largely not bothered about funding sport I reckon unless it comes with gold medal world record holders every time.
My mate runs a kids football club, he has four small size football pitches, costs him £7k a year in rent before a ball is kicked, the field had not been used for years as anything but a dumping ground for burnt out cars and rusting fridge freezers. He took over the land and creaated something for the local kids, everything he does on the land has to be done through council.
he could get a quote for a perimeter fence for 10k he goes to council for planning permission and they say it has to be an approved supplier, money has to be payed to council and they will appoint supplier...cost 15k. many more stories like that.
how the **** does it cost 700k per year to run?
Close it ... ask them to train somewhere else ... go away ... 🙄
Was Don Valley not built for the world student games a couple of decades ago on some dodgy financing scheme that still isnt paid off?
Jess Ennis trains at the EIS anyway, so it will probably make not a lot of difference.
[i]how the **** does it cost 700k per year to run? [/i]
Its pence in the scheme of things.
In fact this would have paid it for a couple of years:
http://www.housepricecrash.co.uk/forum/index.php?showtopic=139754
[i]
The council spent £1,415,000 on compensation packages to 14 managers axed in 2009/10 - £455,000 in redundancy pay and £960,000 in pension costs.[/i]
glupton1976 - MemberWas Don Valley not built for the world student games a couple of decades ago on some dodgy financing scheme that still isnt paid off?
sheffield is still paying for the student games, yes.
but (may be wrong), weren't the trams a huge chunk of the bill? - and most people seem to think they're completely ace.
(i think they're a pain in the arse)
how the **** does it cost 700k per year to run?
i have no idea about these things (i only run a house), but i would guess you'd have to pay for security guards, cleaners, leccy bill, maintenance, yadda yadda yadda.
It would have helped if they hadn't built it in a particularly lively area surrounded by sex shops and scrapyards. Visitors to Sheffield for athletics events etc leave with an appalling impression of Sheffield as the whole of that side of town is run down, shabby and frankly dangerous to leave your car in.
The student games will be paid off in 2024.
They were held in 1991.
More financial credibility from Labour.
It would have helped if they hadn't built it in a particularly lively area surrounded by sex shops and scrapyards. Visitors to Sheffield for athletics events etc leave with an appalling impression of Sheffield as the whole of that side of town is run down, shabby and frankly dangerous to leave your car in.
See, this is where you're not thinking like the council; build something like this in a shitty, run-down corner of the city, and it automatically brings regeneration, 'cos all the trendy hipster types will move there.
Missing the point that run-down areas get regenerated mostly because they're cheap, younger people move there because its cheap, and slowly the area improves, not because someone happens to stick a chuffing great stadium there.
your friend wont be allowed to spend 10k fencing off an open playing field as by law they have to have open acces. sport england have a duty to object to planning approval for all such 'development'
Cn footballer'ists use it for something??
Or local communities for free??