Thursday 24 April 2008

A Question of Money

Here is an extract of a press release made by Arrowcroft (the company pushing for the arena) on 9th December 2003:

"PRESS RELEASE

Date of issue: 9th December 2003

Croydon Arena to be UK 'centre of excellence' for Paralympic sport
On Monday 8th December, StadiVarios Croydon Limited, the British Paralympic Association (BPA) and Arrowcroft Group Plc signed a symbolic Memorandum of Understanding, through which the proposed Croydon Arena will be established as the prime UK venue for regional, national and international Paralympic events.

StadiVarios Croydon Limited has an agreement with Arrowcroft to build, own and operate the 12,500 state-of-the-art multi-use sport and entertainment arena, the centrepiece of the £400 million redevelopment proposed by Arrowcroft, the developer appointed by the London Borough of Croydon, for the strategically important Croydon Gateway site adjoining East Croydon railway station......

Patrick Nally, of StadiVarios Croydon Limited, said:

'The Croydon Arena will be designed to the highest specification with full provision within the architectural designs for disabled access to all public areas. We hope the BPA’s association with the Croydon Arena will be a long and fruitful one.'
."

Now here is an extract of article in The Independent (18th March 2001) about Patrick Nally:

"The man behind a much-hyped new musical about Manchester United football club left a trail of debts from his previous theatrical production, the Independent on Sunday has discovered.

A media and TV production company controlled by Patrick Nally, a smooth-talking sports promoter turned theatre producer, is being pursued through the courts for hundreds of thousands of pounds in unpaid bills
."

Are the council really so sure that the arena, were it ever to be built is financially viable?

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