CHESHIRE Jets will quit Chester and move to back Ellesmere Port if plans to build a £10.8m sports and leisure complex in the club’s original home town get the go- ahead.
As exclusively revealed in last week’s Pioneer, Cheshire West and Chester Council has earmarked the Port for a new multi-million-pound facility that would replace the ageing EPIC Leisure Centre where the Jets used to play in their formative years.
Now we can confirm the British Basketball League giants, who currently play home matches at the 1,000-capacity Northgate Arena in Chester, are willing to move into the new 1,500-seat arena by 2014 if outline planning permission is granted and funding secured.
Jets director Pete Hawkins said: “There is a lot to do before this plan can become a reality.
“But if it does, it will take the club on to the next level. We will be only the second club after Manchester to have learning and community facilities on-site.
“We will end up having one of the best venues in the league.”
While a design has not yet been drawn up, it is hoped the facility could incorporate a learning centre to support the Jets’ key community project, Hoops4Health.
The plans are still in their infancy, however, and the club is still finalising funding from Sport England and other bodies, including the council, for the project.
The Jets have been looking for ways to upgrade their facilities since the club was saved from extinction by fans in 2007.
The BBL’s new TV deal with Sky Sports requires that clubs work towards playing in venues suitable for TV cameras – and the Northgate Arena does not qualify.
Hawkins said: “The new facility will be suitable for TV, it will support our plans to expand the club, speeding up our plans to introduce a disability sports programme and it is what the fans deserve.
“We have one of the best followings in the BBL and they deserve a home that reflects that.”
As well as housing the Jets and operating as a leisure centre, the new venue would also be capable of hosting Great Britain and England basketball games and could become the new home of the North West Superleague netball franchise, Northern Thunder, with British Gymnastics also expressing early interest in the project.
