New stadium plans submitted to council today

AFC Wimbledon has moved a step closer to returning to its spiritual home in Merton after submitting a planning application for a new community stadium at Plough Lane.

The application to Merton Council seeks permission for a stadium that would fulfil AFC Wimbledon’s aim to grow as a club and bring substantial benefits to the local community.

Detailed plans will not be available until the council has completed its verification process, checking that the application complies with the requirements for an application of this nature and complexity. It could take a few weeks for the process to be completed, at which point the plans will be made available for public scrutiny.

Chief Executive Erik Samuelson said: “This is the culmination of 18 months intensive work for the club, Galliard Homes, and our team of specialist advisers. It is an extremely comprehensive proposal covering every aspect of the development and associated issues. We ask everyone to be patient for a little longer before the details can be shared in a few weeks’ time.”

In partnership with Galliard Homes, the planning application seeks permission to build 600 residential units, along with retail and commercial space and a leisure club. The master plan seeks to revitalise this part of Merton as it will bring economic benefits, including more jobs to the area, and add community facilities for local residents to utilise.

The club is seeking to build a stadium with an initial capacity of 11,000 with permission to extend this to 20,000. This would enable Wimbledon to cater for growing support as promotion up the Football League is earned.

During the summer, the club and Galliard Homes carried out an extensive public consultation, which helped to shape the final plans and Erik wished to thanks all those people who participated.

“The detailed feedback from the consultation is contained in the planning application and will be available when the plans are verified by the council,” said Erik. “Until then, I will just say that we’ve been hugely encouraged by the fantastic levels of support our plans have attracted, and on behalf of AFC Wimbledon and Galliard Homes, I thank everyone who took part.”