We live yards from Manchester United’s planned 100,000-seater stadium – here’s what we really think
Barry Devine lives so near Old Trafford he can hear the roar from the home crowd a few seconds before the live coverage shows a goal being scored.
Under the ambitious plans unveiled for a world-leading stadium to replace the current ground, the acoustics will be raised a few decibels higher as up to 100,000 fans pack out the spectator areas just a few hundred yards over his back garden fence.
Neighbours in Railway Road — which runs parallel with Old Trafford’s Sir Bobby Charlton Stand — are in the front row seats for the construction of what is envisaged as the biggest stadium in the UK.
The masterplan for a rejuvenated arena district also includes a fan zone, a processional route and new outdoor spaces at a total cost of around £2 billion.
The various parties involved envisage nothing short of the best stadium in the world.
On a sleepy Easter Monday, families in the tidy row of semi-detached houses gave their reactions to the blueprints revealed with much fanfare last month.
‘We’re keeping our fingers crossed’
Barry, 42, who manages a bar in Manchester city centre, said: ‘There’s a lot of work to be done before this huge infrastructure is put in place but it’s exciting to see all the plans.
‘There’s been talk about it for years because the existing stadium is obviously very tired and the work needs to be done.
‘We just need to see how it unfolds and where the exact location is going to be and what it’s going to bring to the area.
‘Fingers crossed it won’t affect us too much because we have the barrier of the railway line but of course you can’t do something on that scale without disruption.
‘Hopefully it will be well managed and organised and give Manchester’s status as destination city a boost.’
The Everton fan, who lives with his wife and their two young children, occasionally swaps Goodison for Old Trafford, which lies a few hundred feet from the residents’ gardens over a scruffy railway line.
‘We live so near we can hear how the game is going and the roar goes up a few seconds before it comes over on TV when they score a goal.
‘I do go in and watch occasionally if there’s nothing else on and I like to be nosy about what’s going on there.
‘Once the new stadium is built we might make our first away day there.’
‘It looks like a run-down factory’
Andy Cavanagh has lived on the street for 25 years and has a far from dream-like view of the ‘run-down factory’ across the tracks on the ground’s south side.
The retired customer service manager is relieved that the announcement has ended years of speculation about the redevelopment, which at one point raised the possibility that compulsory purchase orders might be used to buy houses in the street.
In the plans released so far, the new stadium will be just to the west of the existing ground.
‘From that perspective it’s a relief to some extent to have the element of “what might happen next” removed,’ Andy said.
‘For us, here, it takes away a degree of uncertainty, because with everything that’s been proposed there’s always a question mark about how it will affect the neighbours who live next to the stadium.’
Andy’s wife Sandra has been to United-organised focus groups about the redevelopment and spoken to representatives from world renowned architects Foster + Partners.
The designers have come up with a striking ‘big top’ design, a vast canopy intended as a take on the club’s devil’s trident.
‘You have a degree of understanding when you look at the plans and more specifically from United the community aspects and how you fit in an extra 15,000 occupants,’ Andy said of the new ground’s increased capacity.
‘What really struck us was the grandeur and the ambition of the whole project.’
Where will the new stadium be?
The new 100,000-seater mega-stadium will be just to the west of the existing ground, according to designers Foster + Partners.
As with Old Trafford, it will be bounded by the Bridgewater Canal to the north and railway line separating the residents’ homes to the south.
A ‘beautiful’, tree-lined processional route will lead from the train station to the ground, according to the world-renowned architects.
United would continue to play at Old Trafford until the new ground is ready, unlike Spurs, who played at Wembley while their current arena was constructed at a cost of more than £1 billion.
The keen runner, 56, has a regime the club’s fitness coaches would approve of but his relationship with the famous neighbour hasn’t always been a smooth one.
His view over the railway tracks is more in keeping with the leaky roof that has added to a glum season at the underperforming club rather than a global sporting arena.
‘When we spoke to the person from United the finances behind the plans were a separate issue, but he was saying they are not going to cut corners,’ Andy said.
‘Currently our aspect of the ground isn’t ideal, it looks like a 1980s run-down factory, we can see the mould, rust and the worst architecture you can ever imagine plus with the extractor fans from the kitchen making a drone all the time.
‘From our experience with United they’ve been trying to scrape by with what they have, which is indicative of the ownership as it stands.’
‘A generational thing’
Andy told Metro he has found the club difficult to contact over the years about issues such as noise, litter and parking. But he likes what he has seen so far.
‘It’s good to see all the integration and ideas from Norman Foster in trying to make something with vision which is not on the cheap and will be a generational thing,’ he said.
‘But it’s difficult to quantify; At the moment there are a lot of people who mean well saying the right thing and everyone’s relatively positive.’
A wider regeneration of the Old Trafford area, involving the club, Trafford Council and the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, has won the approval of Chancellor Rachel Reeves.
The entire project will create 92,000 new jobs and bring an additional 1.8 million visitors to the area annually, with the potential to deliver an additional £7.3 billion to the UK economy, according to United.
Conceptual images show a stadium under the huge ‘circus tent’ canopy with a public plaza that is twice the size of Trafalgar Square.
A pedestrian-friendly area served by public transport is also in the masterplan.
Norman Foster, the influential British architect whose company is designing the stadium district, has hailed it as ‘one of the most exciting projects in the world today.’
‘Entirely new area’
It’s the regeneration aspects that are most of interest to residents Curtis and Jessica Martyn, who envisage a family-friendly space with an appeal beyond football.
Curtis, 35, himself an architect and the founder of EOHMA design studio, said: ‘We’ve obviously got to see more details about how it’s going to materialise, but in general we’re excited about the plans.
‘It will be an entirely new area we can go to.
‘We’ve already got Media City on one side and the upcoming work to Old Trafford as we’re looking more to this side, so the stadium district should spark a good moment for that wider regeneration.
‘The regeneration element is the bit I’m really interested in and the new ground with the huge canopy should be a really valuable public space.’
Jessica, 34, who works in marketing, said: ‘The new stadium looks much better than what we have got at the moment.
‘I’m more concerned about the demolition of the existing stadium and the potential noise, chaos and dust but it looks like it will be good for the area with a better environment that is more family-friendly.’
‘We like the company’
For Azhar Salejee the football club is just part of the backdrop to family life.
Azhar, 39, a self-employed salesman who lives with his wife and their three children, places more value on the street in terms of its proximity to schools in the area.
‘The main thing about having the club on our doorstep is the noise,’ he said.
‘It’s pretty loud and you get people throwing chips and cans of drinks around but you do get cleaners coming up as well.
‘We like having the crowds coming here on match days because it can get a bit quiet.
‘There’s lots of cars and they get tickets, I think sometimes they don’t mind paying the fine because it’s the same as paying for parking.
‘But we don’t really mind it, we like the company sometimes.’
‘It’ll be a proper Theatre of Dreams’
Around the corner, under the famous red lettering spelling out the club’s name, were fans making an Easter Monday pilgrimage to Old Trafford from around the UK and the world.
Richard Kennedy, 48, a financial manager from Nottingham, was soaking up the sights by the ‘Holy Trinity’ statue of George Best, Denis Law and Sir Bobby Charlton with his sons George, 8, and Louis, 5.
‘Old Trafford is iconic; it’s been there for more than 100 years and while it has worked wonders for United the new site will be the largest stadium in Britain with restaurants, shops, hotels and plenty of things for families to do and see,’ he said.
‘It’s going to be a proper Theatre of Dreams, not just a football stadium.’
The Trinity Statue will be moved to the processional route, the main arrival route to the stadium, under the architects’ plans.
Unveiling the designs, United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe was coy about where the money to fund the project will come from.
The club is in debt and has taken measures to cut costs, including ending a donation to a group supporting former players from previous eras and removing free meals for long-serving members of staff.
But the INEOS chief has said the project is ’eminently financeable’ and the club ‘deserves to have the best stadium in the world.’
MORE: Ex-Manchester United stars left ‘struggling’ after club axed £40,000-a-year support donation
MORE: What we know about Man Utd’s new stadium including when it will be built and total cost
MORE: Manchester United’s ‘Sir Alex Ferguson’ VIP box will set fans back £136,000
Do you have a story you would like to share? Contact josh.layton@metro.co.uk