A DOCUMENT submitted as part of Oxford United’s planning application for a new ground has reiterated how the club cannot stay at the Kassam Stadium.

The U’s announced at the end of last month that a full planning application had been submitted to Cherwell District Council, for the construction of a 16,000-capacity ground at The Triangle, south of Kidlington Roundabout.

That application now been validated, meaning a raft of planning documents have been made available via the local authority’s online planning portal.

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An alternative site assessment, prepared by Ridge and Partners LLP, and dated February 2024, states that after June 30, 2026, United’s current lease at the Kassam will expire, and the club will have no legal right to occupy the stadium.

The Kassam is owned and operated privately by stadium company Firoka, separate from the football club and owned by former U’s chairman Firoz Kassam.

The alternative site assessment discloses that United are restricted under the terms of their current licence agreement at the Kassam, to use it for first team league and cup matches, some friendly games, and specified testimonial matches.

The club has use of some office space and the ticket office at the stadium, but is not permitted to use the rest of the ground outside of match days, the document adds.

It is further stated that the U’s have held three licences since the Kassam was built. The original one was due to expire in 2026, but was terminated by Firoka on May 9, 2021, while a short licence was permitted until June 2021, to allow United to play Blackpool in the Sky Bet League One play-offs.

The current licence started on July 1, 2021, and expires on June 30, 2026. It does not include any renewal rights or renewal requirements within it, the alternative site assessment says.

Oxford Mail:

The document was prepared by Ridge, in order to assess site options and whether they could ‘provide a commercially sustainable, long-term home for the club’.

It states: “The club has conducted an exhaustive land search over a number of years in order to identify a suitable site for relocation.

“The only site that meets the parameters for development, is available and suitable for development is The Triangle.

“However, the site is in the green belt and therefore this alternative site assessment has been undertaken to assess whether there are any alternatives sites that are practical, realistic and feasible to accommodate a proposed stadium development within the area of search identified through discussions with the EFL.”

English Football League (EFL) rules mean the U’s must stay within close proximity to Oxford, in order to keep the club’s name.

Further parameters for the assessment included the site being a minimum of 9.4 acres, within walking distance of a major sustainable transport node, and that the landowner is willing to sell or lease the land.

The assessment identified that of the 42 sites, 34 are situated within the green belt. The majority of the other sites were either protected or allocated for other uses, while no viable or available brownfield sites were found.