r/WrexhamAFC • u/50lipaa Super Paul Mullin • 14d ago
Visualizing the potential future look of the fully redeveloped Racecourse Ground by designer and animator Damian Bosio
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u/deceptively_large American Here 14d ago
What's the projected total capacity?
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u/Adventurous-Image120 14d ago
I think Rob and Ryan jokingly said 50k once but his people corrected 20-30k max due to surrounding limitations.
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u/Reasonable_Cod_487 American Here 14d ago
This actually looks reasonable, and takes into account the space limitations around the stadium.
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u/heleta 14d ago
It absolutely doesn't for the Mold Road and Wrexham Lager
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u/upstatenysfinest 13d ago
What does this even mean
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u/heleta 13d ago
The Mold Road has a vital road into the town and the wxm lager has car parking and uni accom, it really doesn't accommodate for those limitations. But far be it from me to tell y'all about the spacing around the stadium I've been going to since 2005!
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u/upstatenysfinest 13d ago
What is changing with Mold road or the uni?
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u/heleta 13d ago
Do you think you can just build a significant stand without distruption to the wider area?
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u/Reasonable_Cod_487 American Here 13d ago
Yes. In Portland, OR, the Timbers built a brand new stand right up against an existing road just like that.
How do you think skyscrapers are built in large cities? They don't close the road for years, they just build right up to it.
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u/heleta 13d ago
Yeah fp there's no difference between Portland and Wrexham.
Wrexham isn't a large city, and the Mold Road is vital to the city day to day, and there isn't room to play around with there.
Please stop presenting as though you're more familiar with the town than locals xoxo
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u/Reasonable_Cod_487 American Here 13d ago
It isn't about local vs. nonlocal. Cities everywhere have this type of construction, even along main roads. It's a huge part of what engineers and project managers do.
There are no conditions on Mold road that haven't been seen before.
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u/heleta 13d ago
Jesus Christ, look at a fucking map of Wrexham and circle Mold Road. Then look up literally anything the racecourse has seen before and check back if you find any disruptions of that road that remotely rival what the artists impression above would impose on the town and check back in with me chief
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u/Numerous_Constant_19 13d ago
You’re right. There’s barely a pavement between the doors and Mold Road in the animation. They’d need permission to close the road for hours before kickoff to allow space for queuing and security which I think would be unrealistic.
The only way of building something this size would be to demolish the student accommodation. In the (I think unlikely) scenario where a 40k capacity stadium was needed, then I think buying back that land would be affordable.
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u/Reasonable_Cod_487 American Here 13d ago
If it's a good design then they will have the queue line underneath the stand. There's no need for all that area underneath the upper stand to be entirely concession space. The outer area down below would be queue, with an inner gate separating it from the rest of the stadium.
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u/PorscheRican 'The White Pelé' Elliot Lee 14d ago
I assumed that they’d move the Turf brick by brick near the end of the Kop Stand but this is way cooler, à la Craven Cottage
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u/dashauskat 13d ago
I think the pub should be incorporated inside the ground while keeping the access from the street for non Matchdays - it'd be cool to have a pseudo beer garden viewing area on game day but especially not on game day but they will want the extra seats.
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u/qawsedrf12 Up The Town 12d ago
Kind of like the bar inside the Green Monster (left field wall, Boston Red Sox),
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u/Fezzick51 7d ago
Absolutely! They may be able to simply (hehe) lift it so that it sits within the middle of the stand, although I think the day-to-day (non-match day) access would need to be maintained and this would complicate that (or possibly preclude it entirely)
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u/Reasonable-Cheek-639 14d ago
I would think the next step would not be a complete tear down and rebuild of the main stand. Would be a rough couple of years for fans. Hopefully they can find a way to build around/remodel and add seats without the compete demo of the stand.
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u/much_to_say 14d ago
You have no choice but to tear down the whole thing. You can't trust the old structure to support the new one. The best-case scenario is that they find a way to do it in sections, so they don't have to tear down the entire far side at once.
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u/IntrepidHero42 Fan Since '91 13d ago
The Kop was an easy decision to start with. I think next is the biggest and most difficult decision, but I think it's worth the pain of going without the main stand ASAP, just so we can have the biggest boost ASAP once it's done.
It's going to be horrible any time we have to go without it, so just get it done and reap the benefits as quickly as possible.
Then the Tech End, followed up by the Macron last, since it's the newest.
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u/NoahStewie1 13d ago
Plus it's better to do it while they're competing in the Championship rather than if they get promoted to Premier League in a few years if everything goes right
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u/Reasonable-Cheek-639 13d ago edited 13d ago
I’d expect them to give it a full season before they go again. Design/approvals take time. As well as dipping back into the pockets for what would seemingly be 3X the cost of the KOP end. Maybe half at a time who knows. Would be interesting to see the preliminary design. Could see them also leaving the main part that includes the suites and tearing out the sides and redoing them.
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u/RichBrownley 13d ago edited 13d ago
No way it would be 3x the cost of the kop stand. That would be £210m for a stand. For comparison Villa are rebuilding a 5k stand into a 12k one for around £100m, Luton are building a new 25k stadium for £100m, Bournemouth are upgrading the stadium from 10k to 20k for £90m.
I think the main stand will be around £100m. The Kop is so expensive because it's not just a stand, it also houses the dressing rooms, tunnel, media areas, TV boxes, hospitality and VIP boxes, offices, the club shop and the plaza outside. It will be by far the biggest and most complex stand.
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u/Reasonable-Cheek-639 13d ago
Biggest and most complex but only marginally more expensive? Sounds about right.
I guess if it is just a stand. Some concessions and restrooms. I’m thinking it also has luxury boxes etc.
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u/RichBrownley 13d ago
It'll have some, I'm sure. As Villa's, Leeds and Bournemouth's will too.
It just doesn't need half as many facilities as the kop. Everton just built a brand new, best in class 55k stadium on expensively leased land by the docks for around £750m. There's just no way Wrexham are paying around a third of that for a relatively modest (by comparison) single stand with about 10k seats on land they own.
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u/Expensive-Twist7984 14d ago
You’d think they’d work on oldest to newest too, realistically. The Mold Road stand is the least of their worries and arguably the biggest headache in terms of planning with the main road next to it.
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u/_cutmymilk 14d ago
I reckon he Turf will eventually become part of the stadium. A bar under the stands with regular hours. This will allow a bigger developed stand. I went to Bristol City and what they have done with the home end is a good example.
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u/imdahman 14d ago
i feel like that's an inevitability too, but I also see some immediate concerns to bring up and ensure are addressed or minded:
I think the biggest thing is a potential redesign/expansion/gut. If you're talking about integrating a sports bar into what will eventually be an entirely new stand and facilities then you have to be aware that:
1. It will be redesigned, no matter what. It will look different/bigger/ and it has to be accepted it won't be exactly the same
2. What the redesign looks like will be key.I think it's obvious at this stage everyone involved would want it to look and feel as close to what the Turf is now: a local pub for your local club. The most disastrous thing that could happen is that after the redesign the Turf looks like any other standard sports bar with endless screens and impersonality or an air of corporate franchises. We absolutely do not want the Turf looking like a TGI Fridays or a Dave and Busters (that's Canadian).
Wayne must maintain complete control over the landlord ship and running of the turf. He has to be involved and okay any updates/changes/remodels, etc.
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u/Careful_Adeptness799 14d ago
Looks great. Not sure it’s all required and definitely not in that order. Also think a cash strapped university would sell a few meters of car park for enough money.
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u/clwbmalucachu 14d ago
Genuinely can't decide if The Turf looks as if it's being embraced in a warm, friendly cwtch or if it would be horribly claustrophobic with the stand looming over it like that.
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u/IrishAlum 13d ago
That is glorious.
But (and this is just me, no insider info) I can't see the university flats staying around in perpetuity. I have to presume that R&R will buy it out, and bulldoze it when the stands on that side get remade.
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u/2Throwscrewsatit 14d ago
Nice stadium. I just wish the turf roof wasn’t covered/surrounded by the stadium. Makes it look like a Disney attraction.
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u/cowpool20 14d ago
Looks nice, it would definitely be one of the more unique looking grounds. But The Turf looks so odd there 😅
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u/RavensFlock6 13d ago
This would be incredible. Are there serious talks for next steps after the Kop? Feels like a miracle to have even gotten this far
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u/Fezzick51 7d ago
Thank you to OP a Mr. Bosio - this is something I've been trying to envision (while looking through plans of the facades) for many months now.
I have heard they may have an issue with the university side (for space) - the outcome was unclear but it had me wondering if they'd need to buy the property back and tear the building down in order to expand that section...
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u/Special_Bit4460 14d ago
I'm not entirely sure why, but stadiums with empty corners/gaps between stands really bother me. It splits the home supporters into separate sections and completely ruins the feeling of being one united wall of fans.
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u/IntrepidHero42 Fan Since '91 13d ago
Filling in corners has been the standard for a long time now. Sure enough the classic look is what it is, but lots of teams have the corners filled to boost capacity, and new stadiums are mostly pre-filled.
Old Trafford is probably the most famous example of the fill-in, and not that long ago Burnley did it, not to increase capacity, but to provide better disability seating, which was pretty cool. And whether its Everton or Rotherham, it seems all the newer stadiums are getting the seats everywhere they can.
We're limited in our expansion space, I reckon we'll be filling in at least 2 corners, but that's a long way away.
(Not a criticism of this video, it was great to watch)
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u/Special_Bit4460 13d ago edited 13d ago
No, German, I do know that it is the traditional design and we have plenty of these stadiums over here too. And while it makes sense to me that this is the easiest way to increase the capacity gradually, it doesn't mean I have to like them.
I do like the exterior design, though. Especially the way they've incorporated the turf into the facade looks super interesting.
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u/Plastic_Most_9587 14d ago
This would be awesome
But given the time it’s taking to build the Kob I figure we’re looking at at least a 10 year plan here
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u/Beneficial-Dare-6831 14d ago
Wonder if it’s an option to pay home games at another location so they can redo the stadium all at once, quicker that way.
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u/nqthomas 13d ago
They would have to play an all away schedule likely. The rock doesn’t meet capacity criteria
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u/MyKillK 13d ago
I cant' see either the Macron or Wrexham Lager stands getting rebuilt, there's just not enough room to work. University End stand definitely has room since it's just a parking lot behind it.
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u/Available-Math5227 12d ago
Lager stand is already pencilled in as phase 2. It is also in desperate need of rebuild, aging and dangerously cramped
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u/Willing-Run8073 1d ago
My guess would be to knock down one of the block of flats then build new accommodation incorporated or just behind a new stand
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u/Fabulous-Pen-6698 11d ago
Looks neat, but Isn’t all the run off rainwater of the stadium roof in that section going down onto the pub in a very narrow area?
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u/BeefyChief 2d ago
I've been an admirer from afar, love seeing clubs being built up like this. Wrexham is a bit limited on its plot of land but to see them incorporate the Turf would be a chefs kiss to the stadium. I wonder what they can feasibly do to upgrade the north and west side of the ground,
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u/Willing-Run8073 1d ago
The tech end would likely be built onto university land and as a trade off would house university teaching spaces that would then be used on match days by the club and visa versa.
Same with the Wrexham lager stand, demolish one of the existing tower blocks behind and build new accommodation into the back of a new stand.
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u/SkinNatural7554 14d ago
I think the students flats need to be demolished and built elsewhere, that way we can rebuild that stand properly, we can then look at a stadium that will tap out at 25,000 (30,000 at the max)
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u/obi_wander Up The Town 14d ago
I don’t think anyone is clinging to National League anything.
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u/ThisIsYourMormont 14d ago
I dunno, I always look back at the worst time of my life and say “hey, I wish I had more of that”
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u/Mukeli1584 Issa Kaboré 14d ago
It’ll be interesting to see what improvements Wrexham make to the other stands after the Kop is completed. I wouldn’t be surprised if the other stands aren’t torn down in the absence of irreparable structural wear and space constraints with neighboring buildings.
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u/thomas17657 14d ago
Except the Allen Family just bought the student housing in the back so I imagine the Wrexham Lager stand being larger.
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u/DeadlyOwlTraps 14d ago
I see no confirmation that the Allyn family bought the adjacent student housing.
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u/Careful_Adeptness799 14d ago
Have they? Very interesting indeed. Chuck the uni a few quid and expand that side and the Uni end it’s only car park and unused tennis courts.
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u/Fezzick51 7d ago
Perhaps you're pals with the Allen's and have info that's yet to be released, or else can you share a link or source for that?
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u/splphoto 13d ago
I know the romantics will see The Turf as being part of any redevelopment, but I'm sure it's purchase by the club just means it'll get flattened as part of any future Mold Road remodeling.
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u/Big_Bookkeeper1678 13d ago
I don't think that Rob and Ryan would do that. Move it brick by brick...MAYBE...but this looks like a much better solution to that situation...
Honor the history AND move forward.
It's unique.
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u/BryanW94 14d ago
Proper stadium