Luton Town Football Club’s development arm, 2020 Developments, has submitted refreshed plans for a 40-acre site in Luton, Bedfordshire, some 12 months after gaining planning permission.
The firm has drawn up new proposals for Newlands Park in the face of the Covid pandemic that sees retail provision on the site more than halved. It has also proposed changes around its planned new 23,000-seat stadium at Power Court that will see residential provision more than doubled.
In a newly submitted design and access statement, the firm said: “The social, economic and political status of the UK has changed considerably, with new challenges facing the property industry. The outbreak of Covid-19 has accelerated changes to how people want to live, shop and relax.”
The club’s original Newlands Park scheme comprised 460,000 sq ft of offices, almost 500,000 sq ft of retail, 260,000 sq ft of leisure, plus a 350-bedroom hotel and as many as 3,600 car parking spaces.
The new proposals will see a dramatic reduction in the retail and leisure, down to just 200,000 sq ft and in car parking – permission will be sought for around 1,600 spaces – while office and other flexible commercial space on the site will increase to 624,000 sq ft.
“Our objective at Newlands Park is to deliver a new attractive gateway to the town that also achieves an economic stimulus,” said the club. “Plans must be inherently flexible and capable of adapting to an ever-changing market. Our focus is to ensure the delivery of a comprehensive mixed-use scheme.”
It added: “The scale of the opportunity at Newlands Park could secure over 3,000 new jobs for Luton, created through a mix of new high-quality offices, R&D and manufacturing as well as some distribution space to enable companies to maintain an efficient supply chain. The revised proposals respond to the growth in demand from businesses for high-quality, flexible space to meet customer needs.”
The club has submitted an outline application to develop the site in two plots.
At its Power Court development, plans for 550 flats have now been upgraded to 1,200 flats, while the proposed 116,000 sq ft of shops and restaurants on the site has been slashed to 57,000 sq ft. Plans to build an 18,000 sq ft health centre are also included in the plans.
The club said that despite the revisions it was still committed to developing a “gateway” scheme for Luton.
“The vision of 2020 Developments and that of Luton Town Football Club has not changed with regards to delivering transformational regeneration in Luton and supporting a high-quality gateway development on the Newlands Park site,” said the club. “It has, however, been necessary to refine the scope of the proposed land uses and secure an alternative for the site, as a result of changes in market conditions and the implications of the Covid-19 pandemic.”
The club hopes to announce a development partner for the new plans this summer and reveal detailed plans of its new stadium. Initial phases of development across both Newlands Park and Power Court are scheduled – subject to planning – to complete in 2022 with the first football game played at Luton’s new stadium in 2024.
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