New stadium plans given final approval

Plans for a new stadium for Oxford United have been formally approved after the club signed a legal agreement.

The 16,000-capacity venue will be built at the Triangle near Kidlington, close to Oxford Parkway station, after Cherwell District Council and the government granted planning permission last year.

The Section 106 agreement commits the club to paying at least £5.1m towards local infrastructure projects including improvements at Oxford Parkway station, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Club chairman Grant Ferguson said: "While important steps remain, this milestone gives us the platform to move forward with confidence as we focus on the next stages of this once-in-a-generation opportunity."

The Kassam Stadium, the club's home since 2001 which does not have a stand on each side, has a lease that is due to expire in 2028.

The new stadium, to the north of Oxford and beside the A34, will include a 180-bed hotel, restaurant, conference centre and community plaza.

Ferguson added: "The new stadium is designed not only as a home for men's and women's football, but as a major community and business hub."

The club will pay about £930,000 towards the reopening of the Cowley Branch Line, which would see two new railway stations open in Cowley and Littlemore, LDRS reported.

The agreement also investments in bus services, a "mobility hub" and public art near the stadium.

Oxford United said the next phase of the project would include the submission of more detailed constructions plans to the local authority to enable works to go ahead.

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