By David Gold
December 20 – A group representing West Ham United supporters, WHU’s view, have claimed to have reached an agreement with the club’s vice-chair Karren Brady to hold a thorough ballot before bidding to move into the Olympic Stadium, after the Olympic Park Legacy Company (OPLC) today re-opened the tender process for interested parties wishing to take on the tenancy of the venue after London 2012.
WHU’s view want a written undertaking from their Board for an independently conducted poll of season ticket holders and academy members.
They say the meeting with Brady will take place in the New Year, though interested parties must register online by the end of January if they hope to move into the Olympic Stadium.
West Ham maintain that they have consulted with fans over the proposed move, and had initially won the right to move into the stadium after the Olympic Games last year following a controversial battle with Tottenham Hotspur.
Following a legal challenge launched by Tottenham and Leyton Orient on the decision to award West Ham the right to move into the stadium, as well as disruption from London’s then ongoing bid to host the 2017 World Athletics Championships at the venue, the club’s move fell apart as the OPLC withdrew from talks.
Formal bids to become a tenant of the stadium for a maximum of 99 years are due back in March 2012, with the winning bidder to be announced by May, two months before the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games at the venue.
Andrew Altman, the chief executive of the OPLC, has claimed that the Stadium’s future is not dependent on a football club moving in after the Games.
“The Olympic Stadium will be a new national stadium for athletics and a multi-purpose venue that can host a full array of sporting, cultural and commercial events in one of the most exciting destinations in the world,” he said.
“Having already secured the 2017 World Athletics Championships, now is the time for bidders to come forward to further enhance the Stadium’s legacy.
“Plans for the Olympic Park are more advanced than any other host city and we are maintaining that pace by securing operators, tenants and events for all our venues before the Games have even started.”
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