Yay - we're getting an ice rink..............

Like feck we will, Brent. More horseshite from the one who saved us. Concentrate on PAFC please - especially the GS.

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James Brent: 'I discuss new proposals for Plymouth Argyle grandstand every week

PLANS for a new grandstand at Plymouth Argyle are still on the agenda - after club chairman James Brent revealed he meets with stakeholders to discuss proposals "every week, if not, daily"

The 50-year-old businessman urged fans to stand by him and his vision for the League Two club after hopes of a multi-million pound hotel and cinema complex at Home Park were dashed last year in favour of a similar development at Bretonside.

Mr Brent, whose willingness to fulfil the project has been questioned by fans, admitted the grandstand had been a "massive source of frustration".

"The delay in making this happen is not through a lack of trying," he said. "We will deliver it.

"There may well be some scepticism among Herald readers or Plymouth Argyle fans but I am conscious that we have said we will complete this grandstand and we will.

"It needs to be funded through other developments, though. I want the club to move forward but we first need to make profit from other projects.

"We are talking to every relevant stakeholder on a weekly basis, if not a daily basis, and we have a whole team dedicated to the grandstand who are working on the plans."

Mr Brent said the initial idea had been to fund the grandstand from the profits generated by developing Higher Home Park, the zone around the stadium including what is currently a car park, by building a multiplex cinema, restaurants and bars.

But in April last year, planning permission was granted by Plymouth City Council for a £40million, 100,000 sq ft cinema and shopping scheme at Bretonside, located next to Drake Circus Shopping Centre.

Three cinema complexes in Plymouth, including the Vue at the Barbican Leisure Park, is simply not viable, Brent said at the time.

"Tactic one, a multiplex to fund it, is now a proverbial dead parrot," he said. "We are looking enthusiastically at a plan B.

"Bretonside hurt, but we did not cry into our soup and have carried on."

He did not rule out that a hotel could "still be a part" of a grandstand development during a Herald interview in July last year, but declined to comment on current plans this time around.

"We will announce something when the time is right but I don't want to discuss the finer details of this project until the fans know what they can expect.

"I am fast approaching my five-year anniversary at Plymouth Argyle and we want to move forward with this project. It has been slower than perhaps I and the fans would have liked, but that's life.

"As long as I feel I can continue to make a contribution to this city and this club, I will do so."[/b]

more chance of me banging all 4 members of little mix at the same time than there is of brent ever building anything ever....including lego sets

oh and dancing on ice stopped two years ago

its been slow because you cant deliver fullstop.

What other projects does he think are going to make a profit to fund this? Suing Torbay Council?

The Brentmare continues

At the risk of having my head shot off, one of the criticisms of his plans for HHP was the fact that the capacity for the Ice Rink would not be big enough to support a professional ice hockey team. Nor indeed any sort of Ice Dance shows. Maybe JB has actually taken on board some of the criticism and learnt from it.

Typical useless Herald. They've published their April Fools stories a day early.

He sounds like some kid who wants people to believe he's something he's not.
His vision is non existent, and the only thing he would take a punt on is a profit dead cert of student/residential developments in the park. Oldway's problems are very similar. He's just hiding what he's really doing, squatting, trying to eventually get local councils to agree to a massive change of use to build private residential properties on valuable community green spaces. That has always been the case, and I will be astonished if any plan B doesn't include such an attempt.

Heaney had the same idea, Todd had the same idea, he even produced plans with skyscrapers in the park, that's how much of a donkey he was. What's up with these dullards ? Watching these speculators trying to build regardless of the wider public interest is depressing. I thought these money men were supposed to be the cream of the crop.

Brent threads merged

More Comedy Gold from Jimmy the Non Developer, sell to someone who Might build a Grandstand one day.

Richard Blight wrote:

At the risk of having my head shot off, one of the criticisms of his plans for HHP was the fact that the capacity for the Ice Rink would not be big enough to support a professional ice hockey team. Nor indeed any sort of Ice Dance shows. Maybe JB has actually taken on board some of the criticism and learnt from it.

hope he has richard, a decent size arena that can host professional sports (hockey,basketball) and shows manly ice while havimg a public rink would be more beneficial to plymouth and the public while bringing in more money for him too.

no i think he is trying to blackmail the council to help him fund HHP by saying the pavilions will not be developed until it is built, thus holding up the councils redevelopment of the Millbay gateway and colin cambell court.

Brent in the Herald wrote:

"We are talking to every relevant stakeholder on a weekly basis, if not a daily basis,and we have a whole team dedicated to the grandstand who are working on the plans."

Music to the AFT's ears I am sure! Plenty of questions to be asked....

Here's two to get started... What sort of capacity are "the team" thinking of and can you tell us the plans for the supporters bar?

argyl3 wrote:

no i think he is trying to blackmail the council to help him fund HHP by saying the pavilions will not be developed until it is built, thus holding up the councils redevelopment of the Millbay gateway and colin cambell court.

Thank you for saving me typing. Absolutely bang on the mark. The council posting one graphic of the service lane behind Pavilions as the future boulevard this week was criminal electioneering.

Meanwhile the Green Tavererners have a whip round to hire a skip so work can start on Oldway Mansions.

I find it quite extraordinary how bitter Jimmy is about the Bretonside development. Just what does he expect ? a whole city's development plans to be shelved while it waits for him to get together another plan that has no chance of getting off the ground.
It's just another repeat of everything is someone else's fault. I suspect the council will press on regardless with Colin Campbell/Millbay etc, with or without the Pavillions magician. His stasis will soon stand out in stark contrast to things happening around it.

Also, very interesting to hear he has a whole team working on the grandstand/HHP plans. Maybe this is where a fair bit of that playing budget is going. I hope he is keeping a tally of what expenses are chargeable to the club and what expenses should be attributed to his own HHP. One wouldn't want the club to be charged for a stadium where part of or the whole might end up in his own personal hands in the not too distant future. It's a good job we've got Tony Wrathall on the Board keeping an eye on the club's best interests, just like he did with Todd and Gardner.

When does the planning permission for HHP expire? It can't be long now, surely?

Brent is simply coming out with this utter bullshit to soothe the minds of his lapdogs and counter the rumblings of discontent on the various FB groups.....

Do not not forget these stories goes to print today, which is April the first

Dont want your ice rink or your ministand brent. Just go FFS!

BRENT OUT NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

CAPACITY, CAPACITY, CAPACITY.

Ask most Argyle fans who fully understand the key elements of how our 'potential' could ever be realised in the future, and it will come down massively to how many fans the ground can potentially accommodate.

Far and away the biggest concern for me is the potential Brentmare of a joke-sized 'Grandstand', brought about by Green Jim's intention of getting anything built - so long as it is for the cheapest price possible.

The absolute last thing we need is for Brent to be concentrating any effort on getting a new stand built, because you can bet your life it will forever condemn Argyle to be bracketed as 'lower league'.

Don't forget we will benefit from an extra ONE MILLION pounds a year from the corporate facilities.