Coventry Stadium planning inquiry: Verdict not expected until new year

The final decision on the future of Coventry Stadium is expected after the turn of the year following the conclusion of a planning inquiry.

The now-derelict venue, home of the Coventry Bees speedway team and stock car racing until it was closed in 2016, is the subject of plans from site owners Brandon Estates to replace it with 124 homes, a 3G football pitch and pavilion.

The inquiry, the most formal process by which such decisions are taken with legal representatives cross-examining parties and expert witnesses to investigate evidence, was paused earlier this year so full evidence and cross examination could take place over a funding request from the NHS that Rugby Borough Council said was not policy compliant.

From there, the rest of the section 106 agreement – which lays out how much money the developer must contribute to things like infrastructure, education, health and affordable housing – and planning conditions were the subject of a round-table discussion to enable the inspector to settle the terms of the permission should the plans be approved.

The biggest bone of contention within that was over provision for the 3G pitch.

It is a central part of the justification put forward by Brandon Estates for the development, arguing that it mitigates the loss of the sporting venue, but concerns have been raised as to whether it is necessary or viable in this location.

Nonetheless, plans have to be made for it in in case the development is granted permission.

To prevent the pitch from disappearing or being unused if a provider goes under, the council has the right to step in but it does not want to be burdended with the financial risk.

The authority made the case for a safety net of more than £50,000 to cover operational costs in case a provider running the facility goes to the wall, plus a separate sinking fund of a little more than £29,000 per year to replace the artificial surface, which typically has a 10-year lifespan.

There appeared to be confusion over the scale of the fund required to replace the carpet but an extended break allowed the council and representatives of Brandon Estates to nail down terms.

It was agreed that a lump sum of £58,500 would go into a general maintenance fund to be spent or returned at a tapered rate, while the sinking fund of £29,250 per year – based on Sport England requirement estimates – would go into a separate account.

Both would be interest-bearing accounts held by Rugby Borough Council.

The council will hold the sinking fund until required with any extra being held for 18 months afterwards to give the authority flexibility in case anything goes wrong. Any excess would then be returned to the developer.

The other term added to the agreement was a minimum of 15 hours per week for community use of the 3G pitch.

While that was agreed, there remains the need to fix the wording on paper and check off the entire agreement with relevant stakeholders, including Warwickshire County Council.

That wording was due to go to Brandon Estates yesterday (Tuesday) with a couple of days for the borough council to review it.

Sarah Chapman, the council's legal and governance manager, said: “We anticipate we will be able to finalise the 106 terms this week, we will then need a couple of weeks to circulate for signatures and execution by the county council and ourselves.”

It was agreed to allow for up to three weeks, up to December 19, taking that part very close to Christmas, which in itself means a final decision is unlikely to appear until the new year.