EPL side Tottenham announced that it hopes to "leave White Hart Lane and move into a new 56,250 capacity stadium in 2017," according to Matt Law of the London TELEGRAPH. Chair Daniel Levy "also defended a season of upheaval and promised there will not be another major overhaul to the playing squad this summer." Levy and Spurs are waiting on the results of a public inquiry that was opened last April, which "has delayed the purchase of the remaining property needed for the land to build the new stadium." The Northumberland Park Development, which incorporates the new stadium, will cost Tottenham around £400M ($665M) (TELEGRAPH, 4/2). In London, Josh Burrows reported Spurs "have bought 18 acres of land" around their present home over the past decade and "relocated 72 businesses." However, the club is still waiting for Secretary of State for Planning Nick Boles "to make a decision on the compulsory purchase order of one more property before building can begin." A club statement said, “It is a major development that will present ongoing challenges. And subject to these challenges being manageable we anticipate going out to tender for construction late this year which will make a stadium opening date of summer 2017 feasible” (LONDON TIMES, 4/2).
TIME TO MOVE: REUTERS' Josh Reich reported Tottenham "is desperate to replace their current 36,000 capacity White Hart Lane ground with a modern stadium." Levy: "We have the smallest capacity stadium of any club in the top 20 clubs in Europe, let alone the current top four Premier League clubs, and given we now operate within UEFA Financial Fair Play rules, an increased capacity stadium and associated revenues is fundamental to supporting the future ambitions and consistent achievement at the top of the game" (REUTERS, 4/2). The BBC reported the news comes on the day Tottenham "announced a profit" of £1.5M ($2.5M) in its latest financial results. Levy described the new venue -- which would be built as part of a development that would also include the land its current home stands on -- as a "landmark project" which will be a "key regenerative component of the local economy" (BBC, 4/2).
