Quote: 48756c6c20 524c4643 "It's a bit of fun, there's no way the club could move anywhere.
Personally I'd just like to see the Allam's/management company removed and the council to actually take back what is theirs, develop the stadium and surrounding area into a proper community facility and have elected people from the community and local authority involved with equal say as to what happens so that it benefits the city and surrounding communities as much as it could do.
If we didn't have the ball and chain of the Allam's, staying at West Park would be so much more palatable and we wouldn't be talking about having our own ground at all.
We fantasise about having x player but know full well that they wouldn't ever play for us in their prime, that doesn't stop us talking about it.'"
First of all what a great projection that is and what great home it would make for us. Sadly it will never happen Costello was our best bet, but although a goer at one time, that didn't get that far at all.
As for the bit above in bold that was exactly what happened when the Stadium was first opened I actually attended a lot of meeting with residents and ward councillors from Walton Street Albert Avenue Selby St and St Georges Road as the council gauged what their involvement in the Stadium would be as it was built . They held meetings and social event in the stadium when it opened and there was a certain amount of involvement from the community and I honestly think they appreciated it. They in fact used the sports Hall a lot on a subsidised basis.
There were monthly meetings between the clubs the Council and the community to facilitate the partnership too. Both clubs provided tickets for these groups in the first couple of seasons as well. It was a model community stadium.
The problem was back then that although a lot of the officers and the community wanted the Council to run the venue and manage it there had been a change of political complexion in the City just before the KC was finished and the new Council's policy was that a management Company be put in to run it.
They believed that it was a fine idea in theory as it meant the council could pass on the maintenance of the stadium to the company but that was the sticking point. The Council put it out to tender but in practise there were a lot of new stadiums rock venues and arenas etc coming on stream across the country and none of the major companies felt the KC was a viable proposition to take on. The only solution was for the clubs to run it between them, but Richo didn't want to do it at all it wasn't his thing and so Adam took it on and set up the SMC. The trouble was it wasn't set up as a neutral separate company, economies of scale made it more sensible to set it up as part of Hull City. Back then everything was amiable and everyone got on. We had a 50 year lease (reviewed after 25 years [iand we should worry about that[/i) and so we were happy with the arrangement. At the time Richo and Adam got on really well and everything ran smoothly it was only when the SMC was sold on with City that the trouble started.
The dream of a community stadium was the ideal principle on which to base the facility which was in any case built with the communities money but it was, as an ethos destined to disappear. As has been said had we had a separate SMC everything would have been fine however without it we have had problems ever since Adam sold City, what's more whilst the current owners of Hull City are in place we always will have them.
