Derwent Park..update on Town RL forum

[Derwent]

23 hours ago, SteelShoe said:

Where would Reds have played if the Comets had of been running this season ? Would Town have evicted them ?

 

Well here's the thing, Town wouldn't have needed to evict the Comets. You may not know but the Comets didn't actually have a formal lease for Derwent Park. They had a contract to rent it on an "as required" meeting by meeting basis subject to availability which is a completely different thing to a lease. They basically had no rights whatsoever regarding the stadium.

People who are having a go at Town need to realise that if it wasn't for their largesse then the Comets may not have completed their historic treble. Town let them use DP for the end of season meetings despite not having been paid for several weeks for the stadium's use. They could have just said sorry but you're not using it until we are paid up to date and there's not a thing Laura could have done about it.

[topaz325]

Mounting debt from 2018 and a very uncertain future at Derwent Park, Speedway was never going to happen in 2019.

 

The great success from 2018 may have been the catalyst or go a long way to the Comets downfall.

Edinburgh when they had great success very nearly signalled the end for them and it’s only through great financial help from business /fans that they survive, even the mighty Poole Pirates are suffering losses, ....success is not good in the long run.

 

 

Edited June 5, 2019 by topaz325

[jenga]

1 hour ago, Derwent said:

Well here's the thing, Town wouldn't have needed to evict the Comets. You may not know but the Comets didn't actually have a formal lease for Derwent Park. They had a contract to rent it on an "as required" meeting by meeting basis subject to availability which is a completely different thing to a lease. They basically had no rights whatsoever regarding the stadium.

People who are having a go at Town need to realise that if it wasn't for their largesse then the Comets may not have completed their historic treble. Town let them use DP for the end of season meetings despite not having been paid for several weeks for the stadium's use. They could have just said sorry but you're not using it until we are paid up to date and there's not a thing Laura could have done about it.

sure i mentioned this a while back on this thread . its called a licence , where both parties can pull the plug at any given time 

if the comets were on a lease , the council or the rugby club would have to buy the lease from laura .think its called a sub lease , but then again , town dont own the ground , the council do 

not having a legal lease has made it so easy for the rugby club and the council  to pull the plug on the speedway .

[Derwent]

5 minutes ago, jenga said:

sure i mentioned this a while back on this thread . its called a licence , where both parties can pull the plug at any given time 

if the comets were on a lease , the council or the rugby club would have to buy the lease from laura .think its called a sub lease , but then again , town dont own the ground , the council do 

not having a legal lease has made it so easy for the rugby club and the council  to pull the plug on the speedway .

Not quite true, Town do own the stadium. The council own the land it stands on, for which Town have a 199 year lease which began in 1946. Its a bit like owning a house on leasehold rather than freehold. But Town do own the actual stadium and it appears as an asset on their balance sheet. It was funded partly by the Mitchell and Graves families and also a loan from the RFL.

[cityrebel]

4 hours ago, Derwent said:

I believe, and its only my hunch, that we will end up with a completely renovated Derwent Park instead of a new stadium. I think the council will then use the BP site to build the commercial offices etc for Sellafield and NHS as a stand alone business park.

It makes sense.

[jenga]

thats one big fire lighter you are adding to the fire there Derwent !

[SteelShoe]

5 hours ago, Derwent said:

I believe, and its only my hunch, that we will end up with a completely renovated Derwent Park instead of a new stadium. I think the council will then use the BP site to build the commercial offices etc for Sellafield and NHS as a stand alone business park.

Not a bad hunch seen as the new executive may well not proceed with the Community Stadium. In the event of this happening would you be pleased to see the track vandalism put right and returned to fit for purpose ?

[SteelShoe]

3 hours ago, Derwent said:

Not quite true, Town do own the stadium. The council own the land it stands on, for which Town have a 199 year lease which began in 1946. Its a bit like owning a house on leasehold rather than freehold. But Town do own the actual stadium and it appears as an asset on their balance sheet. It was funded partly by the Mitchell and Graves families and also a loan from the RFL.

The Council hold the Freehold for both sites and lease DP to Town under two separate leases dated 15th October 1956 and 7th April 1961, these are co-terminus and expire on July 2nd 2154.

[SteelShoe]

6 hours ago, Derwent said:

Well here's the thing, Town wouldn't have needed to evict the Comets. You may not know but the Comets didn't actually have a formal lease for Derwent Park. They had a contract to rent it on an "as required" meeting by meeting basis subject to availability which is a completely different thing to a lease. They basically had no rights whatsoever regarding the stadium.

People who are having a go at Town need to realise that if it wasn't for their largesse then the Comets may not have completed their historic treble. Town let them use DP for the end of season meetings despite not having been paid for several weeks for the stadium's use. They could have just said sorry but you're not using it until we are paid up to date and there's not a thing Laura could have done about it.

Yeah we all know about the rent agreement Derwent it helped keep Town solvent for many years just like the food and bar takings from the Speedway , not so much a symbiotic relationship then. 

Comets did have a very difficult 2018 financially due in part to circumstances outside their control but i doubt very much whether Town are in a financially cosy position. No doubt they will exercise their right to charge the Reds to play at DP in order to make up for the income they will lose from the Speedway .

I'm a Town supporter so are some other Speedway Fans but what they have done to the track is making me consider not going again i'm so incensed. They have botched the place up for no great reason other than to try and get themselves a new pitch and changing rooms before the poop its the fan.

Edited June 5, 2019 by SteelShoe

[Lord Lucan]

8 hours ago, Derwent said:

I believe, and its only my hunch, that we will end up with a completely renovated Derwent Park instead of a new stadium. I think the council will then use the BP site to build the commercial offices etc for Sellafield and NHS as a stand alone business park.

Agreed, certainly looks to be heading in that direction!!

[Derwent]

9 hours ago, SteelShoe said:

Yeah we all know about the rent agreement Derwent it helped keep Town solvent for many years just like the food and bar takings from the Speedway , not so much a symbiotic relationship then. 

Comets did have a very difficult 2018 financially due in part to circumstances outside their control but i doubt very much whether Town are in a financially cosy position. No doubt they will exercise their right to charge the Reds to play at DP in order to make up for the income they will lose from the Speedway .

I'm a Town supporter so are some other Speedway Fans but what they have done to the track is making me consider not going again i'm so incensed. They have botched the place up for no great reason other than to try and get themselves a new pitch and changing rooms before the poop its the fan.

I understand your anger about the track, it’s not something any of us are happy about.

But the other side of the coin is that as of now there is no speedway entity in existence to ride on it. Subsequent events re Laura’s finances have shown the claim that it was a one year moratorium to be completely untrue as the promotion simply don’t have the funds to resurrect it. I don’t see anyone on the horizon looking to pour money in either.

So, what are people expecting ? The track to be maintained in perpetuity on the off chance that someone eventually decides to lose money being a speedway promoter ? 

[geoff100]

The track was left between 1987 - 1999 although tony mole altered it when he came onboard, i think town accept the stadium wont get built in time for the world cup and want derwent park to look better for those matches  .

[SteelShoe]

1 hour ago, Derwent said:

I understand your anger about the track, it’s not something any of us are happy about.

But the other side of the coin is that as of now there is no speedway entity in existence to ride on it. Subsequent events re Laura’s finances have shown the claim that it was a one year moratorium to be completely untrue as the promotion simply don’t have the funds to resurrect it. I don’t see anyone on the horizon looking to pour money in either.

So, what are people expecting ? The track to be maintained in perpetuity on the off chance that someone eventually decides to lose money being a speedway promoter ? 

For the track not to be destroyed so that there is a possibility of someone taking it on. Looking in it appears that the opportunity has been  seized to make sure that doesn't happen.  Even the armoured electric cable around the track that powered the red lights has been severed in multiple places.

[SteelShoe]

58 minutes ago, geoff100 said:

The track was left between 1987 - 1999 although tony mole altered it when he came onboard, i think town accept the stadium wont get built in time for the world cup and want derwent park to look better for those matches  .

Possibly may not go ahead at all Geoff.

[SteelShoe]

1 hour ago, Derwent said:

I understand your anger about the track, it’s not something any of us are happy about.

But the other side of the coin is that as of now there is no speedway entity in existence to ride on it. Subsequent events re Laura’s finances have shown the claim that it was a one year moratorium to be completely untrue as the promotion simply don’t have the funds to resurrect it. I don’t see anyone on the horizon looking to pour money in either.

So, what are people expecting ? The track to be maintained in perpetuity on the off chance that someone eventually decides to lose money being a speedway promoter ? 

well if there is any justice one of the Comets fans will have a big lottery win !

[geoff100]

51 minutes ago, SteelShoe said:

well if there is any justice one of the Comets fans will have a big lottery win !

Hooefully "thj" 

[geoff100]

53 minutes ago, SteelShoe said:

Possibly may not go ahead at all Geoff.

Am also a rugby fan , but i hope it doesnt 

[Derwent]

1 hour ago, SteelShoe said:

For the track not to be destroyed so that there is a possibility of someone taking it on. Looking in it appears that the opportunity has been  seized to make sure that doesn't happen.  Even the armoured electric cable around the track that powered the red lights has been severed in multiple places.

The pitch did not meet the FA's minimum width dimensions for football so the only option was to widen it. Which obviously meant the track had to go. I'm sure if they could have done the pitch alterations without dmaging the track then they would have done. But as long as football is going to be played there then there is no room for a speedway track. Now that it is looking increasingly likely that the new stadium won't be built then football looks set to be played at DP for a long time to come. I know its an emotional issue but you really can't blame anyone for a decision to accommodate a club that does exist over one that doesn't if you look at the hard facts.

[Derwent]

1 hour ago, SteelShoe said:

well if there is any justice one of the Comets fans will have a big lottery win !

Lets hope so and that they build a stadium like Belle Vue specifically for speedway. That would be brilliant.

[Derwent]

2 hours ago, geoff100 said:

The track was left between 1987 - 1999 although tony mole altered it when he came onboard, i think town accept the stadium wont get built in time for the world cup and want derwent park to look better for those matches  .

Derwent Park won't be used for the RLWC under any circumstances. The RLWC organisers have officially confirmed that if there is no new stadium then there will not be any games in Cumbria at all and they are looking at alternative venues elsewhere in the country as a Plan B.