PLANS to redevelopment the Barton Stadium in Winsford could be shelved after it emerged a developer could be in line to build the town’s football club a brand new home.
Vale Royal mayor Cllr Malcolm Gaskill dropped the “bombshell” at a fundraising meeting for the proposed renovation of the run-down ground last Tuesday night.
The developer, who has not yet been identified, could bulldoze the existing stadium and build houses on the site, and create a “Conference standard” replacement on land off Bradford Road previously ruled by Vale Royal as unsuitable for housing.
Winsford has been identified by the new Cheshire West and Chester authority as a ‘housing hotspot’ area, meaning more new homes need to be built to meet demand.
Cllr Gaskill, who was United chairman from 1989-92, initiated talks with the mystery company last Wednesday and is confident a deal can be struck. He told The Chronicle the move would be “win-win all round”.
A similar deal was almost agreed in the early 2000s, but the plans fell through. Winsford Town Council and surviving relatives of Reg Barton would need to approve the transfer of the trust deed if a concrete offer is made this time round.
“That could happen and the Barton Stadium could be built on,” said Winsford United director Alan Johnson, who had initially hoped to raise more than £500,000 to renovate the current ground. He said the alternative proposal “would be far better than we could ever create at the Barton Stadium”.
He added: “We’d still need funds, but it we’d need to raise far less and there would be a lot more benefits.”
