Agenda item

To consider application number 22/0496 for the provision of three new exits to south-east corner of stadium.

[Councillor G Coleman, having declared a prejudicial interest, left the meeting prior to consideration of this item].

The Committee considered application number 22/0496 for the provision of three new exits to south-east corner of stadium at Blackpool Football Club.

Ms C Johnson, Principal Planning Officer, presented the report and advised that it was before the Committee at the request of the Ward Councillors and outlined the application details. The proposal was for three new egress doors in two locations in the eastern elevation of the stadium and two of the three doors would be side-by-side. Both egress points would give access to the alleyway running west to east between the stadium and Henry Street

The Committee was advised that the application had been prompted by a request from the Police to separate home and away fans when leaving the ground and the application was fully supported by Blackpool Football Club’s Safety Advisory Group. 

In relation to the egress points, Ms Johnson stated that away fans would leave the stadium to the east onto Henry Street and then north towards the main coach and car parking areas. Existing alley gates would prevent fans from gaining access to Back Henry Street, an existing bin store to the south would prevent spillage onto Bloomfield Road and existing boundary treatments would prevent fans from accessing private properties.

A Management Plan had been submitted in relation to operation of the egress points and the Committee was reminded that the area had adequate lighting and was covered by CCTV. There would be limited impact regarding visibility of the new egress points as these were considered to be in keeping with the stadium elevations. The Committee was advised that no issues related to environmental quality, ecology, drainage parking or traffic were anticipated and that although fans exiting the stadium were a source of noise and disturbance, the stadium was in itself a source of noise on match days. A representation had been received which raised concerns regarding to anti-social behaviour and intimidation, however Planning Officers were of the opinion that the submitted Management Plan would mitigate this and ensure that fan behaviour was controlled. 

Ms Johnson informed the Committee that the proposal was recommended for approval subject to the conditions listed.

Mr Lewis Baldwin spoke on the item as the applicant’s agent and advised that the application represented a wider vision of evolution for the club and to improve safety for fans. The proposal did not alter the capacity of the stadium and work had been undertaken with the Police and Planning officers to address any concerns raised. Mr Baldwin informed the Committee that provision of the new egresses would allow the Police and Stewards to improve the match day experience for fans and to better control antisocial behaviour and asked the Committee to approve the application.

The Committee discussed the application and noted that the new egress points would improve how fans exited from the stadium, reducing the risk of bottlenecks.

Resolved:

To grant planning permission subject to the conditions listed in the committee report.