CITY VACATE IN STADIUM GREEN LIGHT

TRURO CITY say a deal has finally been struck to leave their Treyew Road home after nine years in the making and move into a new 10,000-capacity stadium, thus securing the longterm future of the club.

The Southern League Premier South White Tigers will receive £600,000 from German supermarket chain Lidl to temporarily relocate while their new stadium, to be shared with rugby union side Cornish Pirates, is built.

Truro confirmed on Wednesday that an agreement has been reached with Jojo Investco Limited, the owners of the ground, to secure the Section 106 monies in return for vacating Treyew Road.

Lidl have already started building work for a new store on the current site and will contribute £2.1 million to the long and drawn-out Stadium of Cornwall project.

Truro say plans are underway to “hopefully commence on a new multi-million-pound facility, which is aimed to be completed in preparation for the start of the 2022/23 season”.

In the meantime, they have agreed a groundshare with Step 5 South West Peninsula League club Plymouth Parkway to commence immediately should the season continue.

The necessary works are beginning shortly to ensure that Parkway’s

Bolitho Park ground is brought up to Southern League ground grading requirements.

In a statement, the club said: “The necessary works will be commencing there shortly to ensure that their Bolitho Park ground is brought up to the Southern League ground grading requirements.

“Although this is a sad day to be leaving our home of so many years, we are confident this is the best way to secure the long-term future of Truro City.

“We ask all our loyal supporters to stay with us through the short-term adjustments as we progress to our permanent home in Truro.”

The current first phase plans would create a stadium which would have 6,000 capacity – to be expanded at a later date to 10,000.

However, it is believed that a new planning application could be submitted for the stadium which could see the first phase of the project being scaled back due to financial pressures and reduced to 3,000 to 4,000 instead.

The stadium at Langarth, just outside Truro, is also set to provide a host of community facilities as well as conference facilities which would be operated by Truro and Penwith College to run its hospitality courses and training.