Council approves £100,000 funding for Boro’s new stand

Scarborough Council’s cabinet has agreed to give the £100,000 raised from the naming rights to the Flamingo Land Stadium to pay for a new stand at the ground.

The council will give the cash if a separate bid to the Football Association is successful.

Flamingo Land secured the naming rights to the Scarborough Council-owned stadium for £20,000 a year for five years but has agreed to give the money up front in a bid to help increase the capacity of the ground, which is the home of Scarborough Athletic FC.

On Thursday last week, the plans for the new stand, which will increase the ground’s maximum capacity from 2,070 to 3,010 spectators, were approved by the authority’s planning committee.

The increase in capacity would exceed the minimum requirement of 3,000, allowing the club to progress up the league pyramid to National League North.

The stand would have 336 seats in between tiered terraces for standing either side, each having capacity for 430 spectators.

On Tuesday, the cabinet approved the funding.

The report which went before the councillors stated: “The total cost of the proposed works is £290,035.

“A grant of £150,000 has been applied for from the FA Football Stadia Improvement Fund (FSIF).

“It is proposed that the Council allocate the £100,000 of the naming rights funding to the project, with the remaining £40,035 being funded by SAFC.

“The naming rights funding would only be released once all necessary permissions are in place and confirmation received that the FSIF bid has been successful.”

The Football Stadia Improvement Fund grant has been submitted and a decision is due on 29 January 2019.

If the bid is not successful the scheme will be unable to go ahead in its current form.