For the uninitiated, Berkhamsted Raiders have issued plans to turn Broadwater into a community stadium and replace the grass pitch with 3G , a plan 100% opposed by Berkhamsted FC. There has been much local interest and debate on social media recently and The Comrades this week had the following letter published by the Gazette. The letter, below, offers reasons why the plan should not be passed and provides a suggested alternative option.

“The debate over the future of Broadwater will probably end with the first site visit from Dacorum planning. They will see the plan submitted by Berkhamsted Raiders meets neither the grant conditions for an artificial pitch, nor the landlord’s condition of keeping it as a step 4 stadium. The site is too small for both and has many planning problems. It is hemmed in by the railway line, the canal, the tennis club and residential flats.

Anyway, who would give Raiders £1million for their scheme? Potential funders will look at the accounts for the artificial pitch that they already run jointly with Ashlyns School.

It is time to move on to what comes next. Enlightened towns like Leighton Buzzard have a sports charity landlord who ensure their club has a lease with over 10 years to run. Hence, they accessed £150,000 of grants last season for stadium improvements. If only we at Berkhamsted Football Club could get a lease that long from the Berkhamsted Sports Ground Charitable Association Ltd, then The Football Stadium Improvement Fund would give up to £150,000 to us to spend at Broadwater over each 5-year period. We would just need to show the work actually needs doing to keep our step 4 status. By contrast only £20,000 would be available to Raiders from the FSIF for Broadwater, as they are only a step 7 club.

Some readers will know that in wet weather, games are often played on the grass at Broadwater when other local step 2 to step 5 clubs cannot play. This is because the BSGCA once before gave a 10-year lease for football, and a grant financed under pitch drainage system was installed.

Good luck to Tring on their artificial pitch bid. They own a suitable larger site and have no adjoining flats with residents to disturb. Why not take a look and pop along to the FA Cup game on Saturday when Tring entertain Berko at 3pm?

Grant Hastie
Director, Berkhamsted FC”