Nottingham Forest’s plans for a major revamp of the club’s City Ground stadium have been given the green light by planners.
The BBC said full planning permission was granted unanimously by Rushcliffe Borough Council’s planning committee subject to a range of conditions.
The scheme will see the existing Peter Taylor Stand demolished and replaced with a 10,000-seater stand, increasing the City Ground’s overall capacity to 35,000.
The English Premier League club first unveiled the scheme in 2019 and although planning permission was first given in 2022, updates have been needed since and the plans therefore need to be considered again.
The scheme is largely the same as the one presented in 2022, meaning that several landmark buildings around the stadium and fronting the riverside are set to be demolished.
Nottingham Forest Football Club is a professional association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottingham, England (UK). The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football.
The City Ground is a football stadium in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England (UK) on the banks of the River Trent. It has been home to Nottingham Forest F.C. since 1898 and has a capacity of 30,455.
Following news of the approval, Forest said in a statement, “The Club is delighted that Rushcliffe Borough Council’s Planning Committee has approved our application regarding the redevelopment of the City Ground.
“We look forward to working closely with our partners on the next steps and will provide a further update in due course.”
Construction was originally expected to cost about £94 million, but an estimate from January 2025 indicates this has risen to £130 million.
The latest report, however, states the development is expected to boost the local economy by an extra £13 milllion a year and create hundreds of jobs.
As a condition of the planning permission, Forest will be required to make contributions to local infrastructure.
These include paying just over £1 million to improve local bus services, £150,000 to upgrade the A60/Cattle Market Road junction, and £200,000 for cycle improvements along Lady Bay Bridge.
The club is also set to enter into a legal agreement with Nottingham Rowing Club to replace its Britannia boathouse, which is set to be demolished as part of the plans.
Replacement facilities will have to be in place before any demolition work takes place, but it was stated during the committee meeting that a location for the new boathouse has not yet been identified.
The club has also been given outline planning permission to build up to 170 flats next to the stadium, but this element will need further consideration at a later date.
Taking into account the structural roof trusses, the new stand will be approximately 38 meters (124ft) high, making it the tallest stand at the City Ground.
Neil Clarke, leader of Rushcliffe Borough Council, said: “Forest play such an important role in the community. We are proud they call Rushcliffe home. It’s heartening we can support them with their aspirations.”
The approval paves the way for the club to buy the freehold of the land which the City Ground sits upon.
Last year, Forest’s then-chairman said the club could relocate away from the ground because of a dispute with Nottingham City Council over the rent the club pays.
The local authority has since agreed to sell the land, but the club previously said any decision to buy the freehold would be “entirely conditional” on it being granted planning permission for the stadium expansion.
No date has been set for construction to start, but planning rules mean it will have to begin within three years of a final decision being signed.
Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis has previously said he eventually hopes to increase the ground’s capacity to 50,000.
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