Changes to Bath Rugby’s future plans for their stadium site have been welcomed by the city’s heritage watchdog – Bath Preservation Trust.
In a statement released this afternoon, Chief Executive Caroline Kay said: “Bath Preservation Trust welcomes the statement from Bath Rugby concerning the plans for a stadium on the Rec.
In particular we welcome the removal of proposals for a large car park under the pitch; partly for environmental reasons as car parking encourages car travel and partly because we assume this removal will enable there to be a reduction in the overall height of any new stands.
We are concerned that a reduction of height is not made explicit in the statement and will work constructively with Bath Rugby and Bath Recreation Ltd to help find an acceptable solution for the heart of the World Heritage Site while hoping to retain the historic vibrancy of Rugby on the Rec.
We note that the next step is a legal appeal; BPT has not engaged with either side on the issue of the Rec covenants and will await the outcome of the Court process.”
I doubt the car park proposal was ever serious. It was just included so that it could be offered as a sacrifice further down the line.