LATEST NEWS

PLANNING DECISION EXPECTED BY 1ST JUNE 2009 ON SOMERSET CONFERENCE CENTRE

Plans for a £1.3m overhaul of the Colin Atkinson Pavilion have been submitted to Taunton Deane Borough Council, with a decision due by 1st June 2009.  The plan is to convert the building once the players have moved into the new Andy Caddick Pavilion, in order to provide improved facilities on matchdays, and on non matchdays the building will act as a major new conference and banqueting venue for the south west region.

The refurbishment will include increasing the size of the current restaurant from 180 covers to 350 covers, and the creation of a Long Room at first floor level with great views and a vaulted ceiling 4.5m high.  This Long Room will be able to seat 180 +, and will also have a new balcony with improved high level seating.  The building will also be fully accessible for the disabled.

Work is due to begin on 1 Oct 209, with compltion in march 2010.

PLAYERS PAVILION TO BE FINISHED BY 1ST JUNE 2009

The new £1.75m players pavilion is on time to be completed by 1st June 2009, in time for the T20 Womens World Cup.  To be named after Andy Caddick, this building will provide the players with some of the best facilities in the country.  Built partly as an extension to the indoor school, it will contain a sports medicine centre, gymnasium, hydrotherapy pool, training room, new changing rooms built to international standards as well as offices for club staff.

The building was designed in close cooperation with the players and coaching staff to ensure that the building provides the full range of facilities that can support players to improve and develop their game.  It will also act as a magnet to enable the club to continue to attract top players.

17th September 2008.

Building contractors Dean Dyball are aiming to hand over the new west stand in time for next weeks final clash of the season against Lancashire, a game that is likely to decide the outcome of the Championship. The west stand has been under construction since January of this year, and is part of a larger development which will also include 64 apartments (Pegasus Retirement Homes), a new public square opposite the Brewhouse theatre and an area for shops and restaurant adjacent to the river.

The club took partial posession of some areas earlier this year. The as yet un-named new members stand has already been in use since mid June, and has been extremely well received due to the excellent sightlines, elevated view and comfortable seating area. The new members stand has a capacity of 485, but with the introduction of the new larger west stand, the number of new seats will be boosted to nearly 3,000.

Chief Exec Richard Gould commented that he was pleased with the progress being made.

"It will be a great bonus for the club to have these new seats available. All of our Twenty20 matches have been sold out for the last 2 years, and the increase in capacity is essential as we continue to compete at the highest level of domestic cricket".

"There is a great deal of development activity going on at the County Ground, fulfilling our aim to create the best County Ground in England. And with the club competing to be win the Championship for the first time in our history, there is a great deal of energy and enthusiasm reverberating around the club."

Other developments currently under construction include the landscaped seating area (Gimbletts Hill) that will be completed within a month or so, and the new Club Hub on the eastern side of the ground that will be completed by June 2009.

MARCH 2008 NEW PLANNING APPLICATION SUBMITTED FOR CLUB HUB

The redevelopment of the County Ground as part of Project Taunton is now well underway.The acquisition of the Plumbers Yard in May 2007 has removed what would otherwise become a ransom strip to the clubs long term future, and in January 2008 construction work began on Phase 1.

Phase 1 is a key part of Project Taunton and delivers a great many benefits, to a wide variety of groups including:

1. 65 residential units specifically for over 65's.
2. A new public area for Taunton, between the river, the Brewhouse Theatre and the cricket ground.
3. Active frontage along the riverline with new provision for retail and catering.
4. Improved views into the cricket ground from the river walkway.
5. Increased seating capacity for cricket club spectators, with an improved level of facilities including modern seating, kiosk areas and toilet facilities.
6. Enhancement to cricket facilities including new scoreboard and groundsman store.

Additionally, the acquisition of part of St James Churchyard will form an iconic visual feature for future generations as well as providing the club with the ability to increase the boundary to meet international standards.

The club also has planning for "Phase 2" which is to be located in St James car park to the south of the ground.This development contains residential units, a new indoor school, new players facilities, medical facilities, club offices and improved corporate facilities, as well as many more seats to boost capacity.However, Phase 2 has a funding gap which cannot be closed in the current financial climate.Therefore, the club has sought ways to provide some of the facilities which would have been delivered in Phase 2, but in a more sustainable manner.

With Phase 1 having delivered better spectator facilities and international size boundaries, the club has concentrated on improving the player and support facilities in the next elements of development, hence the planning application for the "Club Hub".

The Club Hub delivers international class changing facilities, along with a rehabilitation gymnasium, treatment rooms, hydrotherapy pools, office space and lecture / dining facilities.It will also provide office space for the teachers who operate the Study Support Centre.It has been designed to meet the requirements of the England and Wales Cricket Board Strategic Facilities Policy, and meets all criteria for hosting international cricket, for which our existing facilities do not comply. The Club Hub will therefore allow the club to attract international fixtures such as the Women's World T20 Cup, which Taunton will host in June 2009.

The Club Hub is designed to be built as an addition to the existing Ondaatje Pavilion, which contains the indoor school, viewing balcony, changing facilities for recreational users, office space for the recreational and youth development programme, video lecture suite, classroom for Study Support Centre, office space for Prime Time Recruitment, First Aid Room, corporate boxes, kitchens and toilets facilities.Whereas the original Phase 2 Plan would have seen this facility largely demolished, it will now be added to with the Club Hub, which will have internal links at ground floor and first floor to allow both building to act as one centre for cricket and sports development.

Later planning applications could include conversion of an existing pavilion into a major Conference and Banqueting Centre, conversion of Barnicotts into office space, and the installation of floodlights.All of this is reflected in our original master planning.The club will also look to complete Phase 2 in due course, by which time the development will be on a smaller scale because some facilities (eg changing rooms) will already have been provided elsewhere.

The Club Hub represents a major step forward in ensuring that the County Ground provides international facilities for the next generation of players, as well as a regional centre of excellence for cricket through the south west of England.We are planning to begin construction on the Club Hub in September of this year, to be completed in May 2009 at the same time that Phase 1 is fully completed.

LATEST NEWS

Redevelopment of The County Ground at Taunton began on 17th January 2008.  Phase 1 incorporates the western side of the ground in the area of Coal Orchard car park and provides the club with nearly 3,000 new seats, as well as new kiosk and toilet facilities.

The River Stand comes down (22 Jan 2008)

Marcus Trescothick oversees the work!

TO VIEW THE WORK IN PROGRESS CLICK HERE (The webcam can only support 20 viewers at one time)

Somerset CCC has been planning a redevelopment of the site for 5 years and has been lead by Somerset CCC Chairman Giles Clarke, who has now moved on to become Chairman of the England and Wales Cricket Board. His successor, Andy Nash, paid tribute to the work of Mr Clarke, and also the other partners involved in the scheme

"This announcement will signal an investment approaching £20m on two phases of development & the beginning of the transformation of the CountyGround. It has taken a great deal of work and assistance from partners such as the South West Regional Development Agency, Taunton Deane Borough Council and Project Taunton to get to the start date, and we are very grateful for their support. I should also like to pay tribute to the inspirational leasdership of this project since 2002 by Giles Clarke & also to the sheer determination & commitment of our small but talented executive team at the club ably led by Chief Executive Richard Gould".

The first phase of the redevelopment will provide excellent new facilities for the cricket club and for Taunton, and is being spearheaded by Pegasus Retirement Homes Plc. There will be 65 luxury apartments for the over 55s, many with views over the cricket ground. Additionally there will be a new public space for the people of Taunton between the CountyGround, the Brewhouse Theatre and the River Tone which will be fronted by a restaurant and shops. The cricket club will benefit from 3 new spectator stands capable of seating nearly 3,000 spectators as well as a new scoreboard and facilities for ground staff. The spectator stands are due for completion in mid August, with the apartments due for completion in March 2009.

Somerset Cricket Club Chief Executive Richard Gould stated

"With the final hurdles having now been cleared the redevelopment can begin in earnest. This is an exciting time for Somerset Cricket Club and for Taunton. The development by Pegasus will represent a benchmark for years to come as to how sports clubs can positively contribute to the communities in which they operate by providing a high quality scheme for residential, business and leisure use. We are very grateful for the input from Pegasus Retirement Homes plc that has allowed this project come to fruition."

Peter F Askew, Chief Executive at Pegasus Retirement Homes, said: "This has been an incredibly exciting project from the start and we welcome news that work can now begin on-site. The project is costing Pegasus in the region of £15m and, as well as new facilities for Somerset Cricket Club, will provide a superb centrally-located luxury development of 65 apartments for the active retired. Pegasus' apartments will have fantastic views of the cricket ground and River Tone and, with more than 16,000 over-60s living in Taunton, will provide much-needed purpose-built retirement property in the area.

A model of the development (pictured above) is being finalised, and will shortly be on view at the ground. The real stands will be completed by mid August this year, with the apartments completed by March 2009. Temporary stands will be erected for the Twenty20 campaign which will allow for a capacity of 5,800. Once the stands have been completed the ground will have a permaenent capacity of 6,600 - rising to 9,000 when temporary seats are added.

The start of demolition on Thursday also marks the commencement of Project Taunton, which is working to regenerate and bring Taunton to its full potential. We're very pleased to be involved in such a landmark project." For more information on Pegasus Retirement Homes and its latest developments, visit www.pegasus-homes.co.uk or call 0800 583 8844,

Ian Franklin, Project Director of Project Taunton, said: "The new development at the cricket ground heralds the beginning of the town's regeneration and is a huge step forward for Project Taunton. Somerset County Cricket Club is part of the proposed new Cultural Quarter, an area that extends along the River Tone from PrioryBridge and includes the Brewhouse Theatre, Coal Orchard, the Museum of Somerset and Castle Green. Attention will be refocused on the River Tone which will be hugely improved by attractive landscaping, sympathetic new developments and better access by footpaths and cycle routes.

"The completed Cultural Quarter will provide the town with a really interesting mix of independent shops, cafes, workshops and apartments all linked by riverside walks and open spaces. We are looking to bring back life, colour and character to the area, make the most of its rich heritage and create a place where people want to live, work and relax."

To find out more about Project Taunton's latest developments, visit www.projecttaunton.co.uk or call 01823 250 809.

Additionally there will be a new scoreboard and accommodation for ground staff and equipment. This phase will also incorporate a landscaped seating area, to be known as Gimblett's Hill, which will enhance views of St James Church as well as providing a unique setting for watching cricket.

To view an interview filmed with Chief Executive Richard Gould in Nov 07 click here

There is still a substantial funding gap to be overcome for the Phase 2, and the Club will not commit itself to elements of the project that it cannot afford.  Contingency plans will be drafted to demonstrate more affordable options, which could include a refurbishment of some of the existing facilities (including the existing indoor school), complimented with some new developments.

The final phase involves a redevelopment of the northern third of the ground to replace the current Colin Atkinson Pavilion and Ian Botham Stand. A planning application will not be submitted for this until it becomes clearer as to what will be occurring directly opposite on the Firepool site.  In April 2007 the club purchased the Plumbers Yard, which previously stuck into the centre of the clubs property, thereby securing our boundaries.  This purchase was made with the assistance of the South West Regional Development Agency, who were keen to ensure that Somerset CCC retained its town centre location in Taunton.