Coventry City Chairman Tim Fisher has told the Coventry Telegraph's Simon Gilbert that he and Chris Anderson are more in favour of a new stadium at the Butts Park Arena than an out of time site.
Mr Fisher said: “There is one other option on the outskirts of the city boundary, but both Chris Anderson and I would like to go for the Butts Park Arena option.
“It bucks the trend of stadium development today – being an inner-city stadium – however, there are so many positives to the football club moving here.
“There would be no option of the Academy being at the Butts Park Arena, thogh, whereas that would be an option with the other ‘out-of-town’ site.”
“Chris Anderson has been building relationships with Wasps, there is no animosity. They have their business needs, which we fully understand - just as we do, just as Coventry RFC do.
“In terms of Wasps’ position on us playing there, our rent is welcome to them, but it is impossible for them to give us exactly what we need. We need to be a self-sustainable club, we need access to all the matchday revenues.
“We would receive 100 per cent revenues on CCFC matchdays, Coventry RFC would receive 100 per cent on their matchdays. The current deal at the Ricoh is 15 per cent anyway and cannot be changed, and we have zero access to non-matchday facilities.
“The Butts Park Arena is the home of Coventry RFC – it would be an equal joint venture. CCFC moving here would benefit both clubs.
"The company structures we have developed are mindful of insolvency remoteness – if either sporting ‘opco’ were to go bust, it wouldn’t affect the other. As both teams have had their administration challenges in the past, it is important to highlight this.
“We are still in the very early stages, but if we were able to go ahead with this project it would probably take two to three years.
“The planners are saying 12-15 months for planning would be the standard and then 12 months for the stadium to be built.”
More on this: http://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/coventry-news/coventry-city-chairman-tim-fisher-11422382