COUNCIL MUST WORK WITH US
CHAIRMAN Les Byers has called for councillors to stop using Workington “as a political football” and get on with plans to revamp their Borough Park base.
Concern was heightened among the Northern Premier League outfit’s fanbase this week when a media report stated a 75-year lease had been “rejected” by landlords Allerdale Council.
Byers explained that the request, made by an independent councillor, had been “a bit premature” and not submitted on behalf of the club, adding that directors remain in “promising” and “quite reasonable” dialogue with decision-makers over a new lease with the current deal set to expire within five years.
It is the latest twist in a complex saga after plans for a new £29m state-of-the-art community stadium for the football and rugby league clubs on the site of Borough Park got shelved last year.
Byers says talks are now centred around how the clubs can help secure the finance to complete a “scaled down” overhaul but stressed that achieving security of tenure sooner rather than later will be crucial to the Reds playing their part.
“We are being used as a political football and it is sad that it happens, that party politics encroaches into local government,” said Byers.
“The time has come for the various parties in Allerdale Council to forget about the past, who proposed and who stopped the initial plans for the community stadium, and consider the local football club.
“Each party is blaming the other for cancelling plans for the £29m stadium, which would have actually cost the taxpayer more than £95m over a 50-year period.
“We are at the point now, with four-and-a-half years left on our lease at Borough Park, where it is time for action.
“We have to spend a lot of time and money on maintaining the structural stability of Borough Park, it has been a millstone around our necks for 20 years.
“This is the sixth time in the past 20 years that a new stadium has been on the horizon and it is time for everyone at the local authority to join together and help both clubs get an updated facility.”
Byers revealed a phased development over the next three or four years, with Workington continuing to play from Borough Park, is one of the options being considered.
“That would mean football could be played there and the rugby club would still fit but I would emphasise that we are in the early stages of talks and will start with a blank sheet of paper,” he added.
“Talks are ongoing and they have been promising but we do need to start this project.
“Without a long security of tenure we cannot access any funding whatsoever to improve the ground on our own. We need a minimum of 21 years and if it is a phased development we will need more.
“We are very enthusiastic about our community ambitions. There are more than 400 people playing from our first team to women’s sides and junior teams and we want to secure a sporting hub at Borough Park so all our teams
can play on the same site.”