Huddersfield Town owner Kevin Nagle has spoken about his plans for the Accu Stadium site – and says the development isn’t dependent upon success on the field.
Mr Nagle wants the 53-acre Accu Stadium site to be one of the North’s leading conference and entertainment hubs.
Detailed plans are being drawn up now but Mr Nagle’s vision is to turn the stadium complex into a self-contained entertainments, sport and conference venue. The site will probably also include housing and office space.
Mr Nagle is clear his first priority will be a hotel on the site. The aim is to get the hotel designed and built as quickly as possible, maybe within a couple of years.
It’s a massive moment for the town, even bigger than when the stadium was first built more than 30 years ago and went on to inspire many other stadiums, including Wembley.
Billionaire American businessman Mr Nagle has pledged that work will forge ahead on the scheme whether Huddersfield Town are promoted from League One or miss out again this season.
“This is going to go – it’s not dependent on promotion,” said Mr Nagle. “These services are needed regardless.
“There are some things I can control and some things I can’t. I can control the infrastructure and the stadium but I can’t get on the pitch and play. This broken down body wouldn’t allow that!”
Millions of pounds have been invested into the stadium already and the conference facilities are already there with the main conference room and other suites all stylishly renovated in recent months.
Mr Nagle believes a hotel next to the stadium – combined with excellent road and rail links – will make the location ideal for conferences lasting several days. Sports teams could also stay at the hotel when they play at the stadium.
Huddersfield Town’s control of the stadium means the club has a strategy now to increase revenue for the team with football financial rules tying player-related spending to revenue.
In short, the more income from the site, the more they can spend on the team.
Mr Nagle’s vision is that the site will be a place for people to live, work and play.
He said the site would be based on two other major communities where he’s a major investor in Sacramento, California – El Dorado Hills Town Center around 30 miles outside the city and Ice Blocks in Sacramento itself.
“These are places where people don’t need to drive or walk very far to access everything they need,” he said. “And that’s our vision for the stadium site in Huddersfield.”
Although nothing specific has yet been drawn up and everything is at the discussion stage, the club is eager to talk to local business groups and Kirklees Council to do what’s best for the site and the town as a whole.
Mr Nagle said: “Communication and organisation is a lot better collectively than someone standing on their own and we will reach out to the local business community.”
He hopes local investors will come on board with the plans but revealed more investment could potentially come from the USA.
“We would try to find the investors within the UK,” he said. “But if not, there are people I know in the States who have already expressed some interest.
“We are building the model right now for the future and our aim is to bring economic vibrancy into the community.”
Mr Nagle revealed he may look to buy the Odeon Cinema complex next to the stadium which includes the nine-screen cinema, Costa Coffee and the now closed Pizza Hut so it all becomes part of the overall scheme.
“We looked at it before and chose not to buy it at that time but we may go back now the economics look a bit different and perhaps a little more favourable,” he said.
“It would be nice for it to be part of our universe – not essential but nice.”
Sir John Harman, chairman of Huddersfield Unlimited – the organisation that champions Huddersfield’s businesses, investors and communities – said: “The 53-acre stadium site has a key role to play in bringing new life and investment into Huddersfield.
“The Leeds Road corridor is our prime focus for investors with a chain of three anchor sites – the University of Huddersfield’s National Health Innovation Campus sitting in the Investment Zone at Southgate, the industrial sites being offered by Syngenta and the stadium at the centre of the chain.
“Mr Nagle’s vision of a vibrant community growing around the stadium as a major conference centre, as well as a sporting venue, and his commitment to invest in that vision are a strong signal to other investors.
“Nothing could better demonstrate that Huddersfield is on the move.”
