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After
weeks of debate, accusations and counter accusations the result
of the vote was finally announced, the aye’s prevailed and the
battle by the no’s has been lost. The vote, conducted by Electoral
Reform Services, clearly demonstrated that of those returning
their voting slips just over 59% declared a preference to relocate
the club to Kirkby and almost 41% declared a preference not to
do so.
Complaints?
Not from me, maybe some questions and observations, but the fact
is ERS has an excellent reputation to uphold; indeed ten years
ago Evertonians wanted their first vote to be conducted along
their guidelines. Many will endeavour to place a spin on the result,
the reality, however unpalatable for some, is that the Everton
board have obtained exactly what they wanted. They took a calculated
risk in offering the fan base a vote and only the truly naive
expected anything other than a yes vote to be returned. I say
calculated because they reduced the risk of failure down to a
minimum. Prior to the vote the club, understandably, released
professionally produced computer generated images of a floodlit
Kirkby stadium, they explained that Goodison, for various reasons,
could not continue to be our home, they explained that the “Deal
of the Century” was to be obtained through a tripartite collaboration
with Tesco and Knowsley Council and finally, and perhaps now most
infamously, Keith Wyness, Everton’s chief executive, stated that
there was no “Plan B”. It was, to all intents and purposes, a
“take it or leave it” resolution.
The
club paid for the vote, the club decided who was to vote, the
club provided the database, the club decided the question, the
club decided that a unilateral glossy brochure was to be sent
with the voting pack extolling the benefits of Kirkby, the club
was provided with regular indications from ERS, the club utilised
strategically timed press releases from Mr. Leahy, Mr. Wyness
and their stadium designers which reinforced the club’s monologue
on Kirkby and derided those daring to offer an alternative. In
summary the club conducted a highly professional campaign and
ultimately achieved their objective. The only organised opposition
was provided by keioc, a group that can be described, at best,
as an enthusiastic bunch of amateurs that dared to take on the
combined forces of a premiership club’s board, Britain’s biggest
supermarket and, in my opinion, a council that thinks it’s won
the lottery. Professional’s v Amateurs, the outcome was as predictable
as it was inevitable.
Now
that the vote is concluded do Evertonians need dissenting voices
or should we all come together for the good of the club? I suppose
your answer depends on what your definition of the phrase “the
good of the club” happens to be. I believe most people did heed
the warnings from the board and voted with their head and not
their heart. Yes voters consisted of those who fully accepted
what the board and Mr. Leahy told them and others who, in the
absence of a viable alternative, voted on the only deal presented
to them. No voters consisted of those who steadfastly wished to
remain at Goodison, those that questioned the validity of the
information given to them and others who hoped, some may say forlornly,
that a future alternative, perhaps in the guise of LCC and Bestway
Holdings, would eventually emerge.
Obviously
I don’t know who’s right or who’s wrong but I do know that, whichever
way Evertonians voted, they’re neither traitors, luddites nor
any of the other unfortunate derogatory terms that have been used
in recent weeks, they’re merely people expressing an opinion on
the information as they see it.
I
also know that ultimately I’ll be magnanimous enough to thank
all those who voted yes if Everton end up with a fantastic stadium,
very little extra debt and overcome all those geodemographic and
logistics problems, highlighted by real experts, associated with
moving an institution away from a renaissance city to a town.
Conversely I’ll thank those who voiced their concerns and banded
together in opposition if the Kirkby project turns out not to
be the “deal of the century”, we end up with a second rate stadium,
much higher debt than was indicated and have revenue streams which
don’t correspond with those projected before the vote. The problem
with this second scenario is that unspeakable damage to our football
club will have occurred by that time, so in this respect I believe
for now and for “the good of the club” the dissenters that are
keioc shouldn’t disband, should learn from their mistakes, take
stock and in future attempt to promote a more professional voice
for the underdogs in this, the fans.
The board may have their wish / majority / mandate, call it what
they will, but they shouldn’t be too complacent about what they’ve
achieved, a comparison with the previous ballot on the Kings Dock
project reveals that whichever way you look at the King’s Dock
vote it was an overwhelming endorsement from the people who actually
matter most to Everton Football Club, those people who actually
attend the games throughout the season, their fans.
| Kirkby
King's
Dock |
| |
Vote |
Poll
|
Vote |
Poll |
| Yes |
59.265% |
41.542% |
86.498%
|
68.405%
|
| No |
40.734% |
28.553% |
13.501% |
10.677%
|
| DNV |
|
29.734%
|
|
20.864%
|
| Void |
|
0.172% |
|
0.055%
|
The Kirkby vote data demonstrates a clear percentage, over 59%,
in favour of the proposed move, it also exhibits, when compared
to the King’s Dock vote, a significant increase in opposition
and perhaps, when comparing those that did not vote (dnv), a general
indifference to the Kirkby project as a whole. More ominously
when the poll data of both of these votes are compared a worrying
statistic emerges.
Whilst
the King’s Dock percentage of poll clearly reinforces the result
of that vote the Kirkby data does nothing of the sort, in fact
the yes vote now represents just over forty one percent. To the
committed yes voter this will be dismissed as a mere statistical
aberration as a “first past the post” situation was clearly proposed,
but I would suggest that the board of Everton Football Club dismiss
this at their peril as one of the key factors to the future success
of any proposed new stadium development is the clubs ability to
fill it on a regular basis. I’m reminded of the American correspondent
commentating on the fiasco surrounding George W Bush’s first election,
after several days with no result he announced, “The country has
spoken, we’re just not sure what they’ve said!”
Many
interpretations can be applied to any vote, this one is no exception,
and as I stated at the beginning it’s arguably inconsequential
as the Everton board will now be moving forward to secure what
they see as the only deal on offer to the club. Their contention
is that Kirkby offers a deliverable “win win win” scenario, Kirkby
get their town centre redeveloped, Tesco get a massive supermarket
and Everton get a £150,000,000 stadium. One of my problems
is, what happens if it becomes a “lose lose lose” scenario? What
happens if the residents of Kirkby, the local opposition political
parties and other retail developments within a thirty-minute drive
of Kirkby force the government to review and ultimately reject
this proposal? Some people are under the impression that Tesco
are all powerful and will deliver this project and this may well
be the case, however, here’s just some of the Tesco projects that
have run into considerable trouble in recent years:
| Tesco
Store |
Problem |
Action |
Bury St Edmunds |
Extension
built without full planning permission |
May
be forced to demolish |
| Andover
|
Development
bigger than Heathrow Terminal 5 |
95%
of locals protest |
| Slough
|
Planned
to build megastore |
Regulator
halted project |
| Yiewsley
(London) |
Accused
by Co-op of misleading planning officials |
Plans turned down |
| Worcester |
Move
existing school against local wishes |
Application
rejected after Government review |
| Stockport |
Store built 20% larger than planning permission |
Council capitulates |
In my opinion Tesco are clearly orchestrating this project. In
order to push their plans through, the business strategy adopted
for these massive projects appears to be one that promotes regeneration
and “something for the community”. If this eventually fails or
they have to significantly reduce their development, perhaps at
the expense of the stadium, they’ll at least have the consolation
of other development projects to exploit, they have many, one
is the proposed massive supermarket in Great Homer Street that’s
part of the Project Jennifer regeneration scheme. Everton remember
have no back up, no contingency plan, no “plan b”.
Under
these circumstances wouldn’t it make good business sense to at
least investigate all potential opportunities no matter how late
they appear? This would address two issues; firstly it may placate
those fans who feel that the LCC / Bestway Holdings proposal has
been unreasonably derided by the board, prove once and for all
that it is or isn’t a red herring and irrespective of cost it
may at least offer the possibility of an alternative; it could
in fact present the much needed plan b to the Kirkby project.
Secondly and perhaps more importantly Everton need to indulge
in some meaningful dialogue with LCC, if Kirkby collapses and
we definitely have no alternative site, this will potentially
be our best source for land for any future development.
At the moment we seem to be involved in little more than a public
slanging match with LCC, unfortunately conducted in public through
the local press, I cannot understand for one moment how this can
be conducive to Everton’s best interests.
Whilst
many people have accused LCC of favouring Liverpool FC my view
is that the Liverpool board have simply done a better job, they
understand a fundamental rule of negotiation, quid pro quo, and
have managed to conclude the necessary deals that are required
to give their fans a stadium which is worth leaving their current
home for, they have a board with a vision and the necessary people
skills to realise that vision whilst managing to keep the majority
of their fans on board.
It
is a sad indictment on our custodians that whilst our neighbours
LFC are essentially masters of their own destiny, our club, our
great club, has become little more than a pawn in a bid for an
out of town retail park development.
This
vote has split the match going Everton public like no other issue
I can remember and before anyone starts ramming the word majority
down my throat just remember what the voting figures were, 15,230
v 10,468, that’s a difference of 4,762 meaning that the vote was
swayed by the decision of just 2,382 people. Everton’s current
average attendance is 36,738.
Can
anyone honestly tell me that 2,382 people voted yes on the basis
that they truly believed Everton are about to get the deal of
the century or that Everton are getting, as stated by Terry Leahy
“to own a £150 million stadium for around £35 million
investment”? No, many will have voted yes for one reason and one
reason only, simply there was no other viable alternative on offer.
When the prospect of an alternative that had tangible attractions
to the fans became something of a fly in the ointment out came
the open letters from Keith Wyness and Terry Leahy rubbishing
the idea followed by a technical assessment, from an employee
of a company involved in the Kirkby project, that was later made
to look distinctly lightweight by the joint opinion of HOK and
WSP.
Others
will have voted yes because the Kirkby project, again in the absence
of a viable alternative, was promoted as the most cost effective
deliverable solution for a club that has an atrocious balance
sheet and poor financial backing. This has been Kirkby’s unique
selling point all along, it’s beneficial to the Everton board
because they either can’t or won’t borrow hundreds of millions
to finance their own stadium build.
After
explaining what Tesco is contributing to the project, a specific
stadium cost of £110M is finally mentioned in Terry Leahy’s
open letter, this is later confirmed by Keith Wyness as the true
net cost of the stadium. Keith Wyness is confident, some would
say over confident, that the sale of Goodison, £15M, and
naming rights, minimum £25M, will raise a combined £40M
in contribution towards that cost, this leaves a figure of £70M
which needs to be accounted for through a combination of vague
“discounts” and some unspecified long term debt taken on by Everton.
Perhaps Barr’s new owners (sold in June 2007, a fact conveniently
omitted) wont want to build a stadium for nothing. They are, remember,
a business who operate in a low margin industry and whose profits
are measured in single million figures. Perhaps the stadium is
simply a £75M stadium masquerading as a £110M stadium,
now at least the figures begin to stack up.
So
the board can self congratulate for swaying the decisions of just
over two thousand Evertonians in order to secure the decision
they needed, but at what cost or should that be value? Last Saturday
I went to the game, I jumped a cab for the five-minute trip to
Maghull station, on seeing the badge on my jacket the driver gave
me chapter and verse on why Kirkby was a bad decision, it was
the same in town, around the ground, even in the match. The guy
sitting next to me was obviously a very knowledgeable Evertonian;
it’s always great to talk to guys who have been there before my
time, eventually the conversation came around to the vote, he
turned out to be yet another disillusioned fan. I’m not the sort
of person to engage strangers in conversation but I’m always polite
and I’ll talk to anyone who talks to me, time and time again on
that day I met people who were genuinely upset about the potential
move to Kirkby, throughout the day I honestly met only one person
who was pleased with the result of the vote and inevitably he
turned out to be a red!
Some people I talked to frankly made me look like a part-time
Evertonian, they’ve watched Everton home and away all their adult
lives and have traveled all over the world watching even the pre-season
tournaments, when you hear these people saying that they won’t
be going once we’ve moved to Kirkby there’s got to be something
seriously wrong. Let’s hope time really is a great healer. I’m
not one of those people who won’t go to Kirkby if it happens,
I’ll certainly give it a chance, but if it turns out that part
of me being an Evertonian was about the ground we play in, its
location and atmosphere, whether real or perceived, then I may
just consign that part of my life to the same places that Goodison
is being consigned to, memories and history.
There’s
been lots of talk about white rabbits from hats and red herrings
recently, so just to join in, let’s just hope we don’t end up
with a white elephant! Maybe everything will pan out and we will
get a £150,000,000 stadium development for an investment
of just £35,000,000, for the sake of a lot of Evertonians,
and indeed for Everton itself, I hope that what has been described
is a true representation, if it isn’t I’d at least like to think
that we haven’t been led down the garden path by our fellow Evertonians,
if we have then their positions may become untenable.
Perhaps
we’ve been looking in the wrong direction all along; isn’t that
the secret of a good illusion? There’s an old legal principle
that’s applied when trying to establish the truth, the question
asked is who benefits? Perhaps in this case it would be more advantageous
to ask who benefits most?
If
it turns out that we are being led down Tesco’s garden path then
on principle I will refuse to spend another penny in any Tesco
store, now I won’t expect Terry Leahy to lose a nano second of
sleep over my decision, I wouldn’t expect him to lose any if some
other Evertonians were minded to do the same, but if 5,000, 10,000
even 20,000 Evertonian families joined in a boycott they may just
get the message. People from Liverpool are often accused of many
things, being unprincipled is definitely not one of them, how
many of you reading this, even after all these years, would touch
a copy of the Sun even if offered one free of charge?
The
next few months may be extremely interesting, off the pitch we
may soon see an agreement between Everton, Tesco and Knowsley
Council as a precursor to planning permission being sought, Everton’s
accounts are out next month and may prove interesting reading
and heaven forbid if LCC and Bestway Holdings produce a deliverable
business plan for the loop site. On the pitch we have European
football to look forward to, we’re at the top end of the premiership
and we’re entertaining the champions next week with possibly our
best squad for many years, we’ll be winning a trophy next!
This
has simply been my view of recent events; I accept others will
view the same events in a different light; we’re all entitled
to our opinion. Where perhaps we have common ground is that we
all want the best for our great club. At an early age every member
of the Evertonian family is taught that famous Latin phrase that
will always be associated with Everton Football Club, nil satis
nisi optimum, you’re not suggesting that my father was telling
me a lie?
To
paraphrase De Gaulle “A battle was lost, not the war”
Colin Fitz. (04/09/07) |
