Newcastle United’s training ground redevelopment remains in planning limbo, with no formal application yet filed, according to The Athletic’s Chris Waugh.
Responding to a fan question in his mailbag, Waugh wrote that “a new training ground also requires planning permission — and it has not yet been applied for, as far as I am aware.”
Waugh attributed the delay partly to “PIF’s process-driven approach,” aka taking a million years to make a final decision, and noted that executive turnover has slowed
progress.
Waugh explained that former and current club executives — Dan Ashworth, Darren Mitchell, and Ross Wilson — “have been heavily involved in drawing up plans for a new training ground, with all three visiting prospective sites.”
Newcastle has already made an offer for an place in the last 12 months, but Waugh reported that their bid “fell significantly short of the asking price.” The Magpies has since “narrowed down their search to two other plots, one of which is in Seaton Burn, North Tyneside.”
According to Waugh, Brad Miller, Newcastle’s chief operating officer, is trying to find a place large enough to host all NUFC clubs and academies, meaning men’s, women’s, and the two academies.
“No final decision has been taken on whether all will eventually be grouped together,” Waugh added. “Sources close to PIF have suggested that a training-ground announcement is likely before a decision is taken regarding the future of the stadium,” with “months, rather than years,” hinted as a realistic timeline.
Still, Waugh cautioned that “given how long this has dragged on for and previous soft timelines have been missed, ultimately we will have to wait and see.”
