Forest Green Rovers have now formally applied for planning permission to build a new stadium, near to Junction 13 of the M5. The stadium would be part of a wider 50 acre development, which would also see the construction of a business park. This Eco Park as it has been called, would attract businesses which specialise in green technology, similar in principle to those companies owned by Forest Green Club Owner Dale Vince. There would also be other sports facilities too on the site and the new football stadium which would have an initial capacity of 5,000, would could be increased to 10,000 at a later stage.
New Lawn Main Stand
The proposed new stadium, which would be sited eight miles away from the present New Lawn Ground in Nailsworth, has raised eyebrows, as the New Lawn Ground itself is only ten years old. During that ten years the stadium has seen quite a lot of investment and is of Football League standard, having a capacity of 5,140, including 2,000 seats. This capacity seems more than adequate for the average home gate of around 1,650 and there is plenty of spare capacity if the Club were promoted. So it is surprising that the Club would want to abandon it so soon. I can only guess that the owner feels that relocating would possibly attract more supporters and provide more income for the Club.
More details about the proposed scheme can be found on the Forest Green Rovers website.