Northampton Town: Concerns raised over East Stand land deal

Northampton Town Football Club borrowed money from Northampton Borough Council to improve its stadium, but the East Stand has never been finished

Concerns have been raised about a deal which should see a football stand redevelopment completed eight years after it stalled.

West Northamptonshire Council had agreed a deal worth £890,000 to sell land behind Northampton Town's East Stand, but it was later put on hold.

The authority has also received a separate £2.05m bid for the land.

An extraordinary full council meeting heard that all taxpayers should be considered in the deal.

A final decision by the Conservative-led council's cabinet is expected next Monday.

The East Stand at the League Two club's Sixfields stadium was supposed to be refurbished using money from a £10.25m loan, but work stalled in 2014 after contractors went unpaid.

The cash had originally been loaned to the club under its previous owners in 2013 by Conservative-led Northampton Borough Council to rebuild the stand and develop land around the ground.

However, the money seemingly went missing and became the subject of an ongoing police inquiry.

The deal between West Northamptonshire Council and Northampton Town had been based on an £890,000 valuation of land surrounding the club's stadium

The borough council has since been replaced by West Northamptonshire Council as part of a unitary realignment of local government in the county.

The council is trying to finalise a deal that would see the grandstand completed and the neighbouring land sold for further redevelopment.

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In November, an agreement was announced that would have seen the council sell the land to County Developments Northampton Ltd (CDNL), which is owned by the football club, for £890,000.

After the council asked the bidders to submit final bids, CDNL maintained the offer but stated if the East Stand was not completed within five years, the council would have the option to buy the land back for £1.

Meanwhile, property developer Cilldara increased its alternative bid of £1.8m to £2.05m.

Northampton Town said the deal to sell the land to CDNL would protect the club's future

Liberal Democrat councillor Jonathan Harris told Monday's meeting "it would seem rather foolish to rush" the decision over the land.

"If there is an opportunity to revise this timetable... it's a really important decision not just for the supporters but for the whole community of West Northamptonshire," he said.

Conservative councillor John Shepherd said: "It's our duty to obtain best value for our 400,000 residents not simply the 1%, broadly, who might attend the football club."

Leader of council's Labour group, Gareth Eales, said: "We've got to consider value; we've got to consider that the taxpayer gets the greatest benefit."

Conservative cabinet member of finance, Malcom Longley, said it was "a complicated issue".

He said cabinet would "think through" the comments on valuation and timescale over the next week.

The land which will be developed is behind the unfinished East Stand at Northampton Town's ground