i news | 23 November 2023 | James Gray | Sports News Correspondent
Inside Wimbledon’s £200m headache as angry residents promise to derail expansion
"Powerful group of locals with 'all the skill sets' tell i about their campaign to kibosh the construction of 38 new tennis courts and an 8,000-seater stadium as All England Club seeks to grow"
"Wimbledon’s £200m expansion plans have set them at loggerheads with local residents in a dispute that has encompassed a leading 18th-century architect, a 1993 legal document and even the next General Election.
The All England Club (AELTC), who run the annual Wimbledon Championships, want to build 38 new courts and an 8,000-seater stadium in order to keep pace with the other three grand slam tournaments in New York, Paris and Melbourne.
But residents in SW19 have organised against proposals to build on a former golf club across the road from the club, which will need several levels of planning approval before any building work, which would take up to eight years to complete, can start.
On Tuesday, Wandsworth council rejected the club’s application by seven votes to none, meaning it will now pass to the Mayor of London. Sadiq Khan’s office could choose to overrule Wandsworth, but planning experts have told i they expect the case to go before the Planning Inspectorate inquiry, where the various opposing authorities will make their case, irrespective of his decision."...read more
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