MORE than 80 per cent of those who have completed Grimsby Town's survey on its new stadium plans have voted "overwhelmingly" in favour of the council helping the club relocate to Peaks Parkway.
More than 2,000 people have already had their say on Grimsby Town's plans to build a new £22 million Community Stadium within the next three to five years.
As reported, the club's director John Fenty announced at a press conference on Wednesday that he was hoping to include the project in North East Lincolnshire Council's Local Plan, which is currently being consulted on.
Of those who have completed the online survey since it went live on Wednesday, the latest figures available showed that 87 per cent said their preferred option for the council was for them to allocate a site for a new stadium off Peaks Parkway.
When asked whether or not the council should help the club relocate, 94 per cent said yes.
Mr Fenty said the figures showed that residents were "overwhelmingly in favour" of supporting relocation to Peaks Parkway.
He added: "We have had a fantastic response so far. While the football club knew there was significant support for its relocation to Peaks Parkway, these figures surpass all expectation.
"It's important that people do not take this message as job done – every single response will feed into influencing the make up of the council's New Local Plan."
Mr Fenty said the purpose of this exercise is to elicit opinion about the club's aims and objectives to relocate.
He added that while there has been "overwhelming" support for the club's plans for a new stadium so far, the message needed to be reinforced so that the project would be a "cornerstone" of the council's Local Plan – which looks to map out the authority's aspirations for the economy and area.
NELC has also set up a special committee to consider if there are any other sites in the borough that would be appropriate.
However, Councillor Andrew De Freitas (Lib Dem, Park), has distributed a flyer to residents in the area opposing the plans.
In this, he stresses the importance of protecting the green space and allotments already bordering Peaks Parkway.
The flyer reads: "Is there a need for a Community Stadium when the borough already has King George V Athletics Stadium, Bradley Community Football Development, Grimsby and Cleethorpes leisure centres and numerous other sporting and leisure venues?
"Will NELC close down all of these facilities to create the need for a Community Stadium on the green fields of Peaks Parkway? It would be insane!"
Mr De Freitas also added he has been "assured" that his petition with 2,800 signatures opposing the project will be taken into account during the council's Local Plan consultation.
He added: "With many more signatures added to our petition during the coming weeks, I am confident we will have a strong case to stop further loss of green space and allotments along Peaks Parkway."
Mr Fenty has challenged Mr De Freitas over his stance historically in relation to the football club's relocation and the Local Plan when he was leader of the council.
A raft of questions were put to the Park ward councillor by the club, which also challenged him on the leaflets he circulated.
Among the questions posed were what evidence he had that King George V and Bradley community pitches, as well as the allotments, were at risk if the club's proposals were delivered and why he turned down offers to consult with the club on the proposals for Peaks Parkway.
Mr De Freitas declined to answer the questions, saying: "I have no intention of having this debate with Mr Fenty through the Grimsby Telegraph. This is making it highly political and singling me out.
"It has been suggested I have a vendetta against the club and that is not true. He can phone me any time."
According to Mr De Freitas, Mr Fenty admitted during a radio interview that an enabling development would see 1,650 homes built on both sides of Peaks Parkway.
Responding to these claims, Mr Fenty said: "As part of the submission in terms of including the plans in the council's Local Plan, we provided two scenarios. The first was the stadium plus 1,650 homes and some small shops, while the second was the stadium plus a major retail and around 850 homes.
"Not all houses are necessarily going to be at Peaks Parkway, some will be spread out across the borough. We are planning to build either side of Peaks Parkway but other areas will be looked into to deliver the capacity.
"In response to questions relating to public transport, the club can confirm that the Peaks Parkway destination will accommodate a regular bus service, which will also be beneficial to local residents, the crematorium and the school."
Mr De Freitas said the development of a number of houses on Peaks Parkway would be "completely over the top".
He said: "It will be like a new village with Peaks Parkway running through the middle of it. Just think what that will do to traffic, it will result in a lot of serious congestion.
"I also think it is important we retain some of the green fields in urban areas, especially in and around a strategic strip."
He added: "The public needs to know there is still no planning application, and yet this has been going on since July 2012.
"I have no objections to Mr Fenty wanting to consult with people at the proposed site and to get their views. His vision for a new stadium is a matter for him and it is up to him to emphasise that the plans he will display have still not been submitted."
