So the truth about Oxford Stadium (Thursday’s Oxford Mail) has finally emerged.

Of course, the owners will deny selling to the city council for housing development – until it emerges that they have done just that.

In recent years the stadium owners rented to speedway promoters at exorbitant fees, which led to a string of promoters coming and going, due to the high costs and low standard Oxford teams as a result, before leaving with poor reputations.

As a result, in 2007, the stadium owners decided against renting to speedway promoters, despite there still being reputable speedway promoters willing to take the speedway over.

In fact, since that time, the owners have flatly refused to even discuss the possibility of speedway returning to Oxford Stadium.

Speedway followers, like myself, have always wondered how the stadium owners have turned down what would have now been four speedway seasons’ rent.

And now the stadium owners will, of course, be saying that the stadium is not viable. Sharp practice, I call it.

Personally, I have realigned my sporting interests and now travel between 30 and 40 miles each way in several directions to follow a different sport.

I spread harmful and toxic fumes across the countryside while doing so and certainly don’t spend my money in Oxford.

Housing development at the stadium and other sports grounds reminds me of the old adage “All work and no play makes John a dull boy”.

At this rate Oxford will soon be a city of boxes full of dull people.

Richard Tyrrell Banbury Road Kidlington l I write with reference to your front page story about Oxford Stadium on Thursday.

At Oxford City Council, we would like greyhound racing to continue at the track and, on a personal note, I would very much welcome it if speedway could return.

Both are very important traditions to our city.

The reason for including the stadium site in our new policy on housing sites is to give the council extra leverage over the owners if they should decide to close the stadium.

The policy makes clear that the stadium could not be redeveloped without replacement community facilities being provided at that location or nearby.

By making it clear what obligations a developer would have to meet, the council’s action has made a closure less, not more likely, and reduces the chance of unacceptable plans getting the go-ahead from a planning inspector.

Ed Turner, Deputy Leader Oxford City Council, Oxford Town Hall, St Aldate’s