Luton Town and their home of Kenilworth Road have been the source of much interest since the club were promoted to the Premier League in 2023. Given the limitations of their current stadium, it is unsurprising that the club have been looking for a new home for some time. How close are they to leaving Kenilworth Road and what plans do they have in store?
Why Do Luton Town Need a New Stadium?
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The Hatters have played at their Kenilworth Road Ground since 1905, but local restrictions have meant that the Club would find it very difficult to redevelop Kenilworth Road and have decided instead to move the Club to a new location.
Even before promotion to the Premier League, Luton Town were aware that Kenilworth Road wouldn't be able to pass the scrutiny of the PL rulebook regarding teams' grounds and that changes were needed if they wanted to play at the highest level, which was always the team's ambition.
Solutions were found but the long term restrictions on development mean that Luton need a new stadium if they are to grow as a club.
What Are the Plans for Luton's New Stadium?
In 2019, Luton Borough Council granted planning permission for a 23,000-seat stadium at Power Court. The location is popular with supporters as it remains within Luton and is around one mile away from Kenilworth Road (not far from the railway station). The new stadium has an interesting design as shown below (courtesy of the Luton Town website, where more information and images can be found).
The scheme has also received a major financial boost with the decision by Luton Borough Council to approve plans for a Hotel and Retail Park to be built near Junction 10 of the M1. Called Newlands Park, the development will help pay for the new Luton Town Stadium.
Luton reveal bigger and bolder plans
In May 2024, the club's chief executive Gary Sweet said that the plans for the new stadium are now ‘bigger, better and bolder' as a result of the club's season in the Premier League in 2023/24. The financial rewards for playing in the English top-flight have given the club more money to spend on the stadium which could see things accelerate in the near future.
Sweet said: “The extra income from Premier League promotion has enabled us to go bigger, better, bolder. Originally it was to be built in three phases, starting at 17,500 capacity, but now we’re going straight to our maximum allowable capacity.
“And because we’ll save time, material, money and upheaval avoiding that, we’ve really been able to enhance the design too, with some of those extra touches which make a real difference.”
When will Luton move to their new ground?
The club have announced that a construction time for the stadium will be around 24 to 30 months, but work is yet to start due to various barriers relating to finances and planning permission. In February 2024, Sweet confirmed that the plans were still active and that he hoped that work could begin by the end of the year.
In May, Sweet provided an update on the timeframes that that club are currently working towards. He said:
“There are so many complexities with a project like this, in a location like this and at a time like this including some outside of our control. But if we’re looking at concrete facts, groundworks have already started and, in-sync with UKPN’s targeted schedule on the sub-station, piling is currently scheduled to start in the first half of 2025.
“That’s the foundations being laid. After that, you’re looking at approximately a two-year build time. Construction of the stadium can begin before the sub-station move is finished and we won’t need to wait for the residential development to start either.
“So that gives you some idea – targeting an opening for the 2027/28 season but must allow for test events and training and as it would be a nightmare to move mid-season we may be pushed to 2028/29.”
The club hopes that the design of the Power Court Stadium will be able to “capture the core characteristics” of the team's current home, Kenilworth Road, and that it will be able to support the same atmosphere that the team experienced in their bid for promotion this year.