A POPULAR non-league club has received a major boost in their hopes to build a new stadium.
Dulwich Hamlet have had the next stage of the redevelopment of Champion Hill.
Southwark Council has to approve plans for the astro turf in the playing fields next to the ground to be the setting for the new venue.
The cabinet members have approved the report and signed off on it, which can lead to the demolition of the existing ground.
Local media claims that members agreed to the move to the Greendale Playing Fields so Dulwich can progress its plans.
The club is keen to build an all-weather pitch and then a new stadium to .
Reports have suggested that the playing fields will continue to be available for public use and stay in the council’s hands.
chairman Ben Clasper has insisted the council’s decision has been the “final obstacles are removed”;.
He said: “Since the planning application was approved, the club has demonstrated that it is a responsible and committed pair of hands when entrusted with open land in the area and delivers on the expectation that we will increase sporting provision and community use.
“We look to grow that responsible stewardship with a new stadium that the community and council can be proud of.”;
Dulwich has played in the borough for the past 123 years and has been at Champion Hill since the 1990s.
The club has regularly pulled in crowds to watch the team which has led to Claser to insist the ground is not fit for purpose.
He claimed that 70,000 fans last season for the third year in a row.
It has also been suggested that the club even had to STOP SELLING tickets to avoid going over-capacity.
He added: “These repeated sell-outs are starting to cause negativity in our community.
“They drive people away from the game and actually drive people away from SE22 on the weekends who would rather go elsewhere than risk the disappointment of being turned away.”;
for the new stadium would see it boast a capacity of 4,000 fans.
There would be a “kick about”; space as well as 219 new homes built in the redevelopment.
