Jurassic Park – Villa Shelve Ambitious Redevelopment Plans – What Next"
Villa Park is home. Our historic and collective focal point as supporters since 1897.
It was, until the year 2000 at least, also a place of true football stadia nostalgia.
That was until then owner Doug Ellis saw fit to oversee the unceremonious destruction of Archibald Leitch’s architectural masterpiece; the original Trinity Road Stand.
Its replacement, a large generic Playmobil-inspired construction, sits opposite the smaller and narrower ‘Witton Lane Stand’, infamous for its claustrophobic concourse and soulless feel. The latter, restricted in size and scope at the time of building due to its proximity to residential properties also had seating replaced shortly after opening following complaints of cramped conditions.
The Holte End, by contrast, is an imposing two-tiered monolith, with red brick staircases and houses a 13,000-strong battalion for each home fixture. The addition of a prominent tiled mosaic during the Randy Lerner years was a wise nod to the lost features of the former Trinity and provided extra character to our main home stand.
However, even The Holte hasn’t remained sacred, having recently been bastardised following the ill-conceived decision to introduce The Terrace View and Lower Grounds. The Terrace View sticks out as an awkward off-centre visual and reduced already limited concourse space. The Lower Grounds took away a facility traditionally accessed by season ticket holders both before and after kick-...
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