Yahoo News Plans for new community sports venue with North East football charity are unveiled
Plans have been submitted for the first phase of a state-of-the-art sports development in east Middlesbrough.
A community sports facility at the site of the former Southlands Centre on Ormesby Road has been in the pipeline for several years.
Plans were submitted in February last year - however, the footprint of the building was altered when Middlesbrough Football Club Foundation was brought on board as a new partner and fresh planning permission was required.
The proposal for the first phase of the scheme, which will be considered by planning leaders in the coming weeks, is to build a single storey community hub along with a new 11-a-side pitch.
The foundation – the charity arm of the football club – is currently in talks with the local authority to potentially move its headquarters from the Riverside Stadium to the new centre in TS3.
Featuring community rooms, a hall, a multi-use teaching room and a kitchen area, the centre would also host training workshops, employability courses, education, mentoring and social sessions.
Meanwhile, the second phase of the scheme could see further extensions and improvements to the site, subject to planning approval.
A design statement said the building and materials used in the construction will “complement the residential environment”.
Grassed areas and additional trees will be provided to the front side of the development.
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Vehicle and pedestrian access would be mainly from Ormesby Road and the site would retain its existing links for pedestrians and cyclists.
A council report said the scheme would provide a new community sports facility, with safe access and parking, “which will complement the surrounding area and enrich the lives of people living in Park End and Beckfield Wards and surrounding communities.”
If the plans are passed, a full tender exercise will be carried out before a contractor is appointed to carry out the works.
Lynsey Edwards, head of the Middlesbrough FC Foundation, said: they were “excited” at the prospect of moving to the site.
“The Southlands facility will provide a wide range of activity in the heart of the community, and we feel privileged to be working with the Council and the community to develop this offer,” she said.
The Southlands Project Representative Group, made up of Independent and Labour councillors in Park End and Beckfield, Brambles and Thorntree and Berwick Hills and Pallister plus local residents and the town’s two MPs at the time, worked closely with the council to bring forward plans for the site.
