CHIMNEY DEMOLITION - WHAT'S IT MEAN?
Present at the Dema Chimneys' demolition day were several people who now believe that the reality of a new ground for Chesterfield FC on the site is now one significant step closer. This is what they had to say.
Cllr Ray Russell, Leader of Chesterfield Borough Council
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Cllr Ray Russell |
A big day for the Football Club and the Town, Ray
Yes, a real red-letter day after 20 or 30 years of waiting and planning it's finally happening and it's really good to see things being cleared and the way forward being mapped out in front of us.
There are still some Chesterfield fans that are, understandably cynical and don't ever expect to see anything happen, so how determined are the Council to help make the re-location happen?
People should know that the Council are working really hard with the Club and others, together, to try and move things forward and I shall be very surprised if things don't move on this time. There've been a lot of false starts but I think this is the real one, it's the ideal site and it looks to be going on very well.
For the Town as a whole, the A61 corridor looks like it will be transformed over the next few years
The A61 corridor has been derelict in one place or another for a long period of time and at the moment it's looking as though things are happening right along the whole corridor and the plans for the corridor are, I think, brilliant and when things start to happen in what is a totally planned way, it's going to make a really big mark on Chesterfield's entrance.
Football League Fan of the Year, Jeff Hall
Jeff Hall
It is a big day for the Club even though it's very early in the day! It's a privilege to be here. Life's been good since winning the Fan of the Year award, I expect to be going for it again, I've got a taste for it now. It's a good location for a ground, when it's built, the visiting supporters will be able to get straight onto the main road and on to the Motorway, it's close to bus stops and pubs, so I'm looking forward to the first game here.
Chesterfield FC Chairman Barrie Hubbard
A big day today Barrie
Yes, it isa big day today, a bit early for me, but let's hope they fall down the right way!
Do you feel things are starting to enter the final phase after years of talk?
Yes I do. I've been talking to Neil Hartley from Wilson Bowden Developments and they tell me that they hope to put the outline planning permission in by the end of September which to me is quite exciting. Then we've got perhaps six months of negotiations and then I'm hoping that by March or April next year we should be digging the first sod.
It's a cracking location isn't it
Yes, and it looks a lot bigger than you think with all of the old factory buildings down. Where we're standing now, there looks to be a lot of room, a great sight and a great site. The Council are fairly supportive and they think it's a great site too, so if they think that, it's the first time both the Council and the Football Club have wanted to go to the same place, so it is exciting.
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Barrie Hubbard |
Dave Bettney, the father of ex Chesterfield player Chris Bettney and the last Dema employee to leave the site before it closed
A sad day for the person who was 'last man out'
Easter Monday in 2001, I was the last employee off the site, I was the maintenance engineer, so this is a sad day but things have to move on and the fact that Chesterfield are going to build a football ground here makes me really pleased, it'll be something for the whole community to enjoy. I love my football, my son Chris played for Chesterfield, so it's a great idea to have the new stadium here.
What do the Chimney's symbolise for you?
They've been a long-standing feature of the Chesterfield landscape, I can remember them going up, my brother-in-law laid the foundations for them, so it's a sad day after 33 great years working here.
The Mayor, Cllr Trudi Mulcaster, with Dave Bettney
Commercial Manager Jim Brown and his Grandson get ready for the blast
Here they go, Cllr Trudi Mulcaster pushes the button
Finance Director Alan Walters speaks just after the blast
We're standing here looking at a vast empty site, it looks great doesn't it?
It is a great sight but tinged with a bit of sadness, seeing buildings you've known for years go but it's the start of a new future for both the Town and the Football Club.
A day like today surely gives you a feeling that things are moving on and will surely have converted some of those who feel things may never happen
I hope so. There's an awful lot of work going on behind the scenes, a lot of things that we're not in a position to report on or talk about but we're very pleased with the progress so far.
I understand there are good relationships with all concerned
Good relationships are there with Wilson Bowden and the Council, everything's going along very well, we're delighted that Wilson Bowden are co-operating with us and the Council, we are, by the very nature of it, the junior partners at this stage but we are in fact the catalyst for the whole development.
Questions posed by Phil Tooley
