Manchester United have secured the majority of the land required to build a new 100,000-seater stadium to replace Old Trafford.
The club announced on Monday it has acquired a 25-acre site north west of the current stadium from Indurent, an industrial warehousing company.
The land is located around 350 metres away from Old Trafford’s existing site — between Wharfside Way, Europa Way and John Gilbert Way.
The acquisition means that United no longer require land owned by Freightliner, a rail logistics company, located directly to the west of Old Trafford.
Freightliner were demanding around $400million (£301.8m) for the land, substantially higher than United’s projected price of around £50m.
The acquisition marks a change from initial designs unveiled by United and architects Foster + Partners last year, which located the new stadium adjacent to the existing site.
United said they do not anticipate issues acquiring the remainder of the land required by the new stadium’s site.
Further plans for the stadium and the wider Old Trafford regeneration project will be unveiled by United, Trafford Council and the Old Trafford Regeneration Mayoral Development Committee on July 9.
United will then begin the design phase for the stadium project, which minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe has billed as the ‘Wembley of the North’.
United’s ambitious designs for a canopy roof rely upon purchasing land to the west of Old Trafford (Manchester United/Foster + Partners)
Collette Roche, United’s chief executive of new stadium development, said: “Today’s news highlights the progress we’re making towards a world class new home for Manchester United and represents a significant milestone as we move into the next phase of development.
“Being able to build so close to Old Trafford allows us to preserve the heritage, traditions and rituals that are so important to our fans. We are committed to building a world-class stadium with our supporters, not just for them, with atmosphere, affordability and accessibility at the heart of our thinking.
“This is a generational opportunity that is fully aligned with both local and national growth ambitions. Securing the right land for our new home has been absolutely critical, and the land we’ve acquired gives us the stage to deliver a truly world-class stadium that honours our past and is ready for our future.”
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First hurdle overcome, but plenty more await
Land acquisition was the first major hurdle that Ratcliffe’s plans for a ‘Wembley of the North’ had to clear in order to become a reality.
When the club and architects Foster + Partners unveiled conceptual images of what the new stadium could look like last year, plans involved building directly next to Old Trafford’s existing site.
Yet the rail freight terminal located to the west of Old Trafford, a key point of infrastructure for the north west of England, made those initial and provisional designs problematic, and negotiations with landowners challenging.
This acquisition of the land will instead locate United’s new home around 350 metres away, towards Salford Quays, still only a short walk from the club’s home since 1910.
Yet with one hurdle cleared, there are still plenty of other to jump. Financing a project estimated to cost around £2billion remains the biggest outstanding question, especially as that is likely to require a club already holding around £728m in debt to borrow money.
