• Talks over Blues move will take place on 11 January
• Council wants new ground within city boundaries
Everton will enter into new talks with Liverpool City Council over a new stadium. A date of 11 January has been set aside for the two sides to meet following the rejection of a planning application for a new stadium in Kirkby.
That proposed £400m development of a 50,000-seater stadium, in partnership with Tesco, collapsed last month. Liverpool City Council was opposed to the project. It will send a high-ranking delegation to the 11 January meeting, which was promised after the Kirkby decision. It is considered that redeveloping Goodison Park is too expensive.
Everton’s head of public relations, Ian Ross, said: “Throughout the Destination Kirkby process, Liverpool City Council always made it clear that if the project was to fail they would step forward and seek to help us. As a consequence, a working group is to be formed and meetings held to actively explore all the options and possibilities which are open to Everton.
“Despite the disappointment of seeing our proposed move to Kirkby collapse we as a club remain convinced that a move to a new home is not only the right way forward but the only way forward.
“Of course, it does remain to be seen if the City Council can provide us with the level of help and assistance which we will require if we are to [re]locate to any new stadium within the Liverpool boundaries but we will enter these preliminary talks with a measure of optimism.”
The City Council leader, Warren Bradley – who is an Everton fan – said: “We have got a meeting with Everton where we will put all our cards on the table.
“I will be there as will be council chief executive Colin Hilton and executive director of regeneration John Kelly. We want to make sure that we can facilitate things for Everton.”
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