Castleford Tigers in talks over Wheldon Road revamp

Castleford Tigers have confirmed that discussions are being held with Wakefield Council over refurbishing their existing Wheldon Road ground instead of relocating to a proposed new stadium at Junction 32 of the M62.Wakefield Council recently announced its intention to provide up to £2m to Castleford Tigers as part of a new Rugby League Resilience Fund to invest in their current stadium and improve community use.This would enable the Axiom scheme at Junction 32, which is currently expected to include a new stadium for the club, to be refocused away from retail and leisure uses, with an employment and commercial development now being proposed.Castleford Tigers would use the investment to support major redevelopment of Wheldon Road to bring it up to modern standards.Subject to securing the necessary investment, the club’s proposals include the demolition and rebuilding of a new Main Stand, and modernising the existing Princess Street Stand, Railway End and Wheldon Road End.A mix of new facilities, including food and drink outlets and hospitality suites would enhance the matchday experience for fans, while new conference facilities and meeting rooms would boost non-matchday income, and enable the club to further enhance its work within the community.Full planning permission is in place for the Axiom retail and leisure development, and a number of operators are lined up. However, with the immediate impact of the Covid-19 pandemic still being felt by the retail and leisure sector, the likely start of construction had been further delayed.The proposed employment development on the Junction 32 site would create about 1,800 on-site jobs and almost 600 further jobs elsewhere to support it, plus more than 650 jobs during construction.