Dutch club VVV Venlo has announced that its proposed new stadium will be smaller than initially planned. Instead of a capacity of 17,500 seats, the stadium will now be able to hold 15,000 fans with the possibility to expand to a future capacity of 20,000 seats (which was 22,500 in the previous proposals).
Apart from the reduction in capacity, the club and city council have also scrapped plans for a total of 4,000 m² of commercial space around the stadium. The new ground will now get exclusively used for football purposes.
Primary reason for the change of plans is to limit the costs and financial risks of the project. Construction of the stadium, which is estimated to be €42 million, will initially be paid for by the city of Venlo. After sixteen years the stadium will then be bought by a group of private investors against the then going book value (expected to be €26 million).
The club has already started a public tender for the construction of the stadium, which is hoped to be completed by the end of 2014. The stadium will be bowl-shaped and will be equipped with a retractable roof with solar panels.
The Venlo city council will take a final decision on the plans on the 25th of April.
VVV Venlo currently plays at Stadion De Koel, which, with a capacity of 8,000 places, currently consistently sells out. As the location of De Koel does not lend itself for redevelopment, the city council has decided not to buy the ground, which means that the characteristic ground will not get demolished and youth teams can keep playing at it.