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Newcastle United have reportedly approached Populous, the designers of Tottenham Hotspur’s £1. 2 billion stadium, with their own primary redevelopment plans for St. Louis. John’s. That’s according to Mark Douglas of i, who says the Magpies should continue to build their home capacity to more than 60,000 people.
Eddie Howe’s side have sold out every single home game this season, and successes on the field have led to more ticket requests, and Populous chief executive Christopher Lee, who in the past worked with PIF on various assignments in Saudi Arabia, says he’d be “biting your hand” if he participated in an assignment like St. Howe’s. John’s. It should be noted that the Magpies have yet to accept an appeal related to the stadium expansion, with a number of other components most likely to be excited about.
“Throughout my career, I’ve had some tasks that other people thought impossible,” Lee told me. “The Emirates is built on a railway track, [the site] is a triangle with no access. We think it’s difficult, but we feel that each consecutive task becomes more and more difficult.
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“Dublin’s Aviva Stadium reminds me of the prospects of redevelopment of St James’ Park. They didn’t need to move either, it had a capacity of 52,000 people, but it was the most common stadium. They wanted 52,000 seats and a stadium more commonly seated in the same place, however, there were upheavals to overcome.
“There were heritage buildings in the north and in the south that are indexed at the first point and in Ireland the right to protection [of those buildings] is inalienable. Elsewhere they can be bought to compensate for it, including in Ireland.
“So what you do there is a three-dimensional mapping, we call it building data models where you put all that data together in a report. You are then left with an envelope that can then be designed.
“I guess that’s how I started with St James’ Park. There’s Leazes Terrace, which is indexed as Grade 1 and is in a conservation area. The right to light will be an important component, as well as the context. and antique frame. This is the most difficult component.
“They’ve bought Strawberry Place now, which is also a smart piece of land for redevelopment. But again, there’s a meter underneath, which complicates things even more. If it were me, I would start by mapping out all of those elements and try to create some kind of overachieveable and see what you can get in terms of the desired capacity and the desired form and that would be approved.
You can read the full interview about how Populous is making plans to rebuild St James’ Park on the i, here.
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