Oxford United Football Club unveils designs for new stadium

Oxford United Football Club has unveiled what its new 16,000-capacity stadium could look like.

Oxfordshire County Council has agreed to lease land to the club, known as the Triangle, south of Kidlington.

The club has released computer generated pictures of the proposed complex, which will include a 180-bed hotel, restaurant, conference centre and community plaza.

It is subject to planning permission from Cherwell District Council.

The five-hectare (12-acre) site is located south of Kidlington roundabout, west of Banbury Road, east of Frieze Way and opposite Oxford Parkway Station.

Oxford United has to leave its current home at the Kassam Stadium when its lease expires in 2026.

It said its vision was to create a "sustainable sports, entertainment and lifestyle landmark" which was "locally loved and internationally recognised".

It believes the Triangle is the "only viable and potentially available site" for a "best-in-class facility".

Chief executive Tim Williams said, with no option to renew its current lease, the club "must find a new home".

He said the proposals were "highly sustainable and community focused, whilst providing a state-of-the-art destination for all".

He added: "I hope everyone from Kidlington, the surrounding areas and across the county will come to the exhibition and take a look at the plans."

Between 50% and 60% of the 5,441 respondents previously surveyed by the council felt proposals met its important criteria.

But figures were lower for those within a two-mile radius of the site, falling to between 19% and 40%.

A poll held by Kidlington Parish Council in May saw 29.99% of residents cast a vote. The majority of those opposed it.

In a county council report officers acknowledged the site was in the green belt but said it was not required to keep the land undeveloped.

But the leasehold comes with several conditions. The club must produce a "net-zero plan that is fully costed".

In addition, land must be set aside for football and community sports areas, with "limited commercial activities permitted only within the stadium footprint".

The club said it was aiming for women's league and cup fixtures to also be played at the stadium.

The Oxford United women's team currently play their matches at non-league Oxford City's Court Place Farm ground.

The original site proposed for the new stadium was Stratfield Brake in Kidlington but the authority said those plans posed "considerable challenges".

The public are invited to provide at an exhibition at the Holiday Inn Oxford on the Peartree Roundabout from 10-21 October.

Copies of the exhibition boards and forms are available on the stadium website.

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