Stadium expansion?

[HiJazzey]

From auntie: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/q/qpr/3639006.stm

QPR reveal Loftus Road plan

Queens Park Rangers are considering proposals to increase the capacity of their Loftus Road stadium to 28,000.

Rangers want Loftus Road as their long-term home, even if they win promotion back to the Premiership.

The club's major shareholder Gianni Paladini told BBC London 94.9: "We're applying to extend the ground by building on three sides of it.

"It looks like we have a very good chance to have extra boxes," he added. "QPR is Loftus Road."

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What do you guys think? Isn't this a bit premature? We've only just sorted out our finances and we want to plunge into something as financially crippling as stadium expansion!!

[AEK]

It may be a bit soon, but I like the idea of rennovating and adding to the existing ground. Of course that means we might have to play at Craven for a while but hey if they give the loft a facelift I think it would be worth it.

[art]

Well it's gotta happen sooner or later; in this day and age a crumbling 19,000 seat stadium just doesent cut it if you want to be in the Premiership. This would seem to indicate that this Paladini fellow is in for the long haul and is bringing some cash with him. Though i will say, having walked around Loftus Road a few times and seen the confines, I'll be curious as to just how they're going to sqeeze 28,000 seats in there, even with rebuilding 3 sides. Is there space? I'd like to see the plans, if they exist yet.

....I say "crumbling" in the nicest possible way, by the way. :)

[Lloydy]

Well the initial plan appears to be double teiring the Ellerslie road side of the ground. It is only in its very very early stages of planning so don't expect anything too soon.

As for financing I imagine that it will be funded via new executive boxes and stand sponsorship.

[DylanPresman]

It is waaaay to early to be talking about expanding the ground. We are still up the creek and from the latest reports things are still pretty grotty. Given that everyone must know that we could never raise the finances to afford such an expansion and there is always going to be a question of where all theextra seats would go (its not like LR is so expansive that you could shove and extra 6,000 seats into an unused corner). hat makes me think that it is just the new Directors trying to make a good impression withthe regular fans -- get off on the right foot, so to speak

COME ON URRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRssss!!!

Dylan Presman

[Tony Cheval]

Nothing wrong with planning ahead, as an American I am well versed with the time and difficulty in getting beyond that point. :D