Tottenham Hotspur announced yesterday that they are to play two more matches at Wembley because of delays in moving into their new stadium.
The matches are: 15th September against Liveroool and 6th October against Cardiff City. In addition they have rescheduled an NFL game for Wembley on 14th October.
The club has been unable to give a firm date for their move to the new stadium.
Many Wembley residents complained about the disruption caused by Tottenham’s period at the stadium so will not be pleased by this particular guest overstaying its welcome.
In an email to Carolyn Downs Brent CEO, former Lib Dem councillor Paul Lorber said:
Dear Ms DownsA spokesperson for Brent Council told Wembley Matters:
When I raised the issue of Tottenham extending their stay at Wembley beyond their existing Planning Permission you indicated that any extension would require a new Planning Permission.
When Tottenham expected to move into their new stadium The FA accommodated their needs for one or two games by absorbing their schedule within the existing 35 large events.
Now that the opening of the new Tottenham stadium was delayed (as I anticipated would be the case) the news report simply state as fact that their games (and even an American football game) are simply reschedules at Wembley without any apparent consultation with local people or any need for a new Planning Permission.
All of this seems very odd and suggests that things are simply imposed on the people of Wembley without much regard for their concerns or their needs - or any apparent say from Brent Council.
Can you please advise me and the people of Wembley on what exactly is going and why they are not being properly informed before decisions appear in the media.
At the time of the original Tottenham Planning Permission many promises were made. Can you list all the promises and indicate the progress and delivery on those.
What has for example happened for more accurate and efficient Event Day notices as many the current flip over signs are either broken or simply do not work.
The present situation is highly unsatisfactory and the people of Brent and Wembley deserve better.
Any Tottenham games at Wembley this season will be accommodated within the existing planning permission for the Stadium, and be part of their agreed programme of events for the year.In a community email today the Football Association said:
However, they are subject to the cap of events that was initially captured in the original consent (i.e. they don't have the additional events that were granted permission through the 2017 consent).
You will notice on the calendar that Tottenham Hotspur FC now have three confirmed fixtures to be played at Wembley. This was always an option for Spurs due to the tight time scales involved in the development of their new stadium. Spurs will only be playing here for a limited time and will not be playing a full season at Wembley Stadium as has previously been reported in the press.Yesterday the Sun LINK reported that Spurs had been forced to pay a 'substantial' sum to the FA in order to stay at Wembley beyond Satrurday's game.
