By Duncan Mackay
British Sports Internet Writer of the Year
December 3 – Tottenham Hotspur today ruled out holding a referendum among its supporters to see if they back a proposed move to the Olympic Stadium in East London.
Many fans of the Premier League club are angry at the club’s decision to bid in association with entertainment giant AEG to take over the Olympic Stadium after London 2012, which would mean them moving away from White Hart Lane, their home since 1899.
The club also are applying to be given permission for a £450 million ($710 million) redevelopment of White Hart Lane, which most fans back and hope will be granted so they can stay.
“We currently await responses from English Heritage and the Secretary of State,” Tottenham said in a statement on its website.
“We also await the completion of a S106 with Haringey Council and we are currently in discussions with the remaining land owners whose properties we still need to acquire to complete the site assembly.
“At the same time and in parallel with this we are participating in the bid process for the Olympic Stadium site in order for the Olympic Park Legacy Company to select a preferred bidder in the new year.”
The club consulted its supporters over its White Hart Lane redevelopment plans but has not sought their opinion so far on the Olympic Park.
“As our supporters are aware, we conducted a full and thorough consultation process with fans and other stakeholders for the Northumberland Development Project and your views were fully taken on board and influenced the project,” Tottenham said.
“We are, however, simply not in a position at this stage to do anything similar for the Olympic Stadium site in Stratford – no preferred bidder has been selected and therefore this is not a stadium option we, as a Club, can even ask our fans to consider.
“It is also not sensible to ask the question re preferred location, since this should necessarily take into account what is deliverable, based on a wide variety of factors.
“All we would ask of our supporters at this stage is that they allow us the time to consider all the possible options and to determine an optimum solution for a new stadium.”
Tottenham are bidding against Premier League rivals West Ham United for the opportunity to take over the Olympic Stadium.
A decision is expected within the next few weeks.
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