Stadium news

[Bispham Seasider]

The Football League have an article about the South Stand and the webcam here -

http://www,football-league.co,uk/page/LatestNewsDetail/0,,10794~1536711,00.html (http://www,football-league.co,uk/page/LatestNewsDetail/0,,10794~1536711,00.html)

[Bispham Seasider]

While the rest of the country has the most snowfall for six years, it isn't snowing in Blackpool! In fact it was a sunny day today, with lots of piles on view!!! :D

http://img27.imageshack.us/img27/3749/bfccam0303091556jr7.jpg

[Bispham Seasider]

Conspiracy theory # 356
One or two rumours going around today that the contractors upped and left on Wednesday last week supposedly because of lack of payment! :eek:

Whilst the rumour is unfounded, the fact remains that the piling rigs together with all the other machinery left last Wednesday. With the lovely delights of the webcam though, everyone can see that no work has been done on the site since then.........

Conspiracy theory ends.

[Bispham Seasider]

Another day with no work

Another day has gone by with no workers on site, no machinery, nothing. Tomorrow it will be a week since any work was done on site. Today someone has alleged that

"All is NOT well. The contractors have indeed walked off site. There has been an argument. Guess who was involved?"

The "Guess who was involved?" meaning club chairman, Karl Oyston.

:(

[Bispham Seasider]

More speculation flying around - that the contractors walked off the site two weeks ago in a financial disagreement and FK Howard are no longer involved with the project, with the club now trying desperately to find a new contractior to take the job on.

True or not, the fact remains that nothing has been done at the site for over two weeks and the club have made absolutely no comment.

[Bispham Seasider]

The official word from Karl Oyston on the reasons for no work being done on the South Stand -

We are probably deficient on the PR side when it comes to the south stand. I have been mandated by the board to oversee the construction and I've taken the view that in the current economic climate I would be deficient if I didn't take advantage of falling prices and the malaise within the building industry. The whole county is feeling a bit of a malaise. We've got to take advantage and be more price-sensitive regarding construction.

There is no reason why we can't keep pushing on while we are obtaining the best possible price and quotes for the work. I think one or two contractors have been slow to grasp the current climate and we don't feel able to do business with them. So there has been a slight delay. We had a disagreement with a contractor who should be on site now and we have gone back out to re-tender those packages.

As soon as we agree the tender price and those contractors sign a binding contract on that price we will begin work again. Before long the steel frame will go up and there will be a stand there for us all to see, though it will take a while for us to fit it out and put seats in. But like when we were building the north and west stands, when the stand comes out of the ground it will give everyone a real buzz.

The new stand, which would ideally have been open for a pre-season fixture in late July, is now more likely to open in September. Oyston added,

I think supporters, myself included, have been desperate to see the stand for a number of years and I don't think we should spoil things financially for the sake of a month or two. And we have plans for the money we save. We are working very closely with BSA (*) to install a supporters' bar on the ground floor of the south stand. I think that's a big issue for a lot of supporters. It will be the main home stand and will have the nicer and bigger concourses.

We will still try to hit our deadlines for the stand opening but I am fully prepared to sacrifice programming in favour of cost.

(*) BSA - Blackpool Supporters Association

[Bispham Seasider]

With regard to Jimmy Armfield after whom the South Stand will be named, Oyston said,

The view has always been that we will have a ceremony where a time capsule will be buried under the stand by Jimmy and Valeri and then have an official opening game where Jimmy will be the guest of honour. We have spoken to BSA and to Jimmy about the stand and how it will be named. It seems to fit and be workable that "Armfield" will be written across the seats. We all feel it is better than putting a face in the stand like some have tried to do, so it will say Armfield on the stand in white seats.

[Bispham Seasider]

Two new pieces of machinery finally appeared today. Apparently one looks like a digger and the other a 'nibbler' to level the piles off.

Maybe, just maybe, work might resume soon.

[Dynamogal]

Well.....are they digging or nibbling this week? :D

[Bispham Seasider]

Well.....are they digging or nibbling this week? :D
As if by magic something is going on today! :eek: One of the machines on the latest webcam update looks as though it is actually working!!! Whether it is digging or nibbling (or even just moved to look like it is working!) I don't know!! :D

[Bispham Seasider]

Whoopee do - I presume it is the nibbler as I just checked the webcam again (it updates every five minutes) and it keeps moving around all the piles. So at a guess it is capping them off! (I am guessing though!)

[Bispham Seasider]

And even more work today - the puddle has finally been filled in, some of the topsoil has been removed to expose more of the piling and the taller piles over toward the east side have been cut down. Such excitement.... Hopefully, soon I will be able to stop talking about piles and instead drone on about steel work going up! :rolleyes:

[Bispham Seasider]

Lots of work going on now! Some concrete seems to have arrived and work going on! According to someone "in the know" who has seen the webcam images today, the caps for the piles have arrived which means things will soon start to take shape. :D

[Bispham Seasider]

From a post on the BBC 606 Message board -

"Most of the negotiations have now been completed and work will start increasing on the site over the next week or so, hence the large amount of sand dumped there at the end of last week."

Work has certainly resumed, and there were even workers on site yesterday, (plenty of overtime!)

[Dynamogal]

Is there still a link to the webcam??

[Bispham Seasider]

Is there still a link to the webcam??
For some reason it isn't working all the time. No idea why, just sometimes when trying to load, it comes up as the URL being unavailable! And just as it seems work on the site is progressing.

[Bispham Seasider]

It is back working again now!

http://www.blackpoolfcimages.co.uk/

More concrete has arrived. There is apparently plenty of work going on, unfortortunately though for viewing on the webcam, it is to the right of the cam, out of view in what will become the South West corner, linking the West and South stands!

[Bispham Seasider]

On the official site, there are new pictures of the site, with concrete footing now in place. See the link.

http://www.blackpoolfc.co,uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10432~1630536,00.html

A stand might be rising soon!

[Dynamogal]

Rumor has it that the Houston palm trees have been planted. True? Pics would be lovely! :D

[Bispham Seasider]

Rumor has it that the Houston palm trees have been planted. True? Pics would be lovely! :D
Well - there are some palm trees now down the side of the West Stand, where Blackpool Council are finishing off the work on the car park by the stand (it is one small part of what is apparently the largest outdoor car park in Europe).

They have moved Seasiders Way slightly west, further away from the stand, so that there will be pedestrian access and a much larger pavement. However, we don't get down that side of the ground at matches. I will make sure I find out and get some pictures!!