I have to say, and its unusual for me to say it, that the Planning Committee meeting at which the stadium application was determined was one of the most 'staged' committee meetings I've ever seen/attended.Yes I must declare that I was instructed by a third party to make representations against the application (and on a personal level I've never supported the club), but putting that to one side I found the committee meeting comical.It was obvious that certain Councillors had each been told to ask a specific question about a specific key issue, as I knew on both a professional and personal level several of those Councillors and they would never have had the knowledge or awareness to ask the specific questions wihch they did - and indeed having witnessed those Councillors many times at committee both before and after that particular meeting they have or had never asked similar questions in regards to any other applications either prior to or since that meeting.Indeed, at least of those Councillors, who (and I'll put this as nicely as I can) wasn't the sharpest tool in the box, made it blatantly obvious how staged it was by admitting, whilst asking his supposedly probing question generated by his deep concerns, that he thought the application was great and would be supporting it no matter what...which rather made a mockery of him even asking his question.Still makes me chuckle to this day that it's branded as a "community stadium", there was very little of substance to that claim within the application submission and it's only been watered down further since that time. A bit of grass for a professional football team (ok and a rugby team) to play on, and over 900 flats all around it none of which are affordable. Such generosity to the community...
Adam Beamish ● 986d