The Holiday Inn Monstrosity.

[Thecanaryfan 0]

The Holiday Inn Hotel Carrow Road is an absolute monstrosity. A pefect example of how to ruin a perfectly good football club with corporate greed and ill judged financial control. A potential corner fill stand would have cost a quater of the price and potentially boosted the ground attendance by 3,500 but instead the board decided that 50 ''executive'' rooms with pitch views would be ''in the clubs best interests''. It sends a shiver down my spine just to look at it. This horror show of a boardroom, at some point of ludicrucy, decided to build this piece of w##k and destroy an otherwise splendid stadium. A unique and stylish hotel it may be but what the f##k is it doing in our stand? A clear indication of our downward spiral imo which clearly shows where things went wrong at the club. Rant over. Thanks for listening.

 

[Puzzy magnet 0]

I concur. I hate it.

But it pretty much sums up the club''s approach. The ground was sold out - yet we built a hotel rather than more seats. Because it was a cheaper option, and it was the cherished "off field" revenue they love. Except, Holiday Inn is making the vast majority of the money - we just get a 10 per cent take of the bar or something.

Small time. Always will be.

[Dr. Ink 0]

Agree 100%. Completely un-thought out, and a monsterous carbuncle cardboard box of rabbit hutches. I suggested at the time, the best of both could be done together at very little extra cost. It could have been a real showpiece hotel, while also improving the stadium. The hotel with a few special rooms following the line of corporate boxes to keep the ''line'' of the Barclay and Jarrold. But also terraced seating above and below the "extra cost Pitch View Rooms". The response from the club was something along the lines of "not possible, there must be access for emergency vehicles". Doh! such limited vision.

[ncfcstar 292]

Agreed, at the time I suggested to Joe Ferrari on the Official Messageboard that when the filled that corner in then it should be seated with potential for some corporate facilities inside the infill, and then a big screen raking in revenue for advertising.I don''t know the figures for people staying in the hotel, but I for one haven''t seen anyone watching a game from the hotel windows since that bald-guy who got ejected from the stadium only to go up to his hotel room and watch the game from there.

[Jim Smith 2,339]

Nice rooms though. Having said that they are very expensive!

[Yorkshire Canary 118]

Does  it  make  a  profit?  and  does  the  club  retain  a share?

[AJ 1,224]

[quote user="Yorkshire Canary"]Does  it  make  a  profit?  and  does  the  club  retain  a share?[/quote]I think it''s said somewhere that the club have nothing to do with the hotel financially or otherwise

[First Wizard 0]

It kills atmosphere too, the sound just sifts through the space, no wonder the fortress has vanished.

I''ll despise the board for the rest of my days over this appalling decision!.

[Shaun Tilly Lace 0]

Well said, Walt. By the way, did you enjoy Gran Torino, Canary Fan?

[shefcanary 2,449]

It''s very handy for us travelling from far away, but there really was no need for the rooms to have pitch side views! 

Sheffield United have a new 4 star hotel in a similar position relative to the ground but built a corner stand first.  I don''t think that not to have a view of the pitch will lessen the impact on income from the hotel (especially the dire football the Blades are churning out at the moment!).  

Overall a missed opportunity by the club, there was plenty of space to have built it further out, and i beleive it wil be one which the club will regret eventually.  And I say that as a supporter of the clubs off the pitch investment for future income generation as well!!!

[Matt Juler 156]

If we had seats in that corner too, half of them would not be available due to the obligatory "no mans land" that''s required between home and away fans. I''ve had a roomside view in the past, but much prefer my seat in the Barclay.

[Paul Spector 0]

Open your eyes! The bottom line is we NEEDED the money, and had to sell the land. I''m sure if we were plush with cash we would have rathered something else done with it, but the club''s hands were tied.

[Blofield Canary 11]

Getting away from the argument of the merits of the hotel it just didn''t make any sense to build a corner infill.

1. An access large enough for vehicles would have to be incorporated into the design which would have taken out most of the lower tier.

2. As already posted you would need segregation between home and away fans.

Effectively you would have been lucky to get 1,000 seats.

3. We do not need more seats. We can''t sell out the seats we already have. We may be getting around 24,000 each game but we do not sell out.

The club have stated taht they could build the 2nd tier on the City Stand for not much more than the cost of a corner infill and that would give you a hell of a lot more seats.

[missing in action? 0]

it looks bloody hidious there.

[Dr. Ink 0]

Short sighted unimaginitive pillock!

Obviously no understanding of why capacity is virtually never 100% full at any stadium, or how big an Ambulance or fire engine is!

The club missed a golden opportunity to improve the stadium and have the hotel.

[Blofield Canary 11]

[quote user="Big Dave"]

Short sighted unimaginitive pillock!

Obviously no understanding of why capacity is virtually never 100% full at any stadium, or how big an Ambulance or fire engine is!

The club missed a golden opportunity to improve the stadium and have the hotel.

[/quote]

 

Please educate us then as to why 100% is never achieved at any stadium.  I think you will find that 100% is achieved at the majority of premiership grounds every week.

Look at tunnel designs at most of the new stadiums if you want to see the size required for vehicle access. Swansea do you?

 

[canary cherub 1]

It makes Carrow Road look like a hotel which has a football pitch in its back garden. 

An all too accurate description of what our club has actually become.

 

[Blofield Canary 11]

[quote user="Potless Percy "]

It makes Carrow Road look like a hotel which has a football pitch in its back garden. 

An all too accurate description of what our club has actually become.

 

[/quote]

Hotel is more profitable than the football club so what''s wrong with that?

[astrodyne 0]

Those stands at Swansea look terrible. They would look much more imposing and impressive with a multi-eyed blob stuck in one corner.......

[canary cherub 1]

[quote user="jbghost"][quote user="Potless Percy "]

It makes Carrow Road look like a hotel which has a football pitch in its back garden. 

An all too accurate description of what our club has actually become.

 

[/quote]

Hotel is more profitable than the football club so what''s wrong with that?

[/quote]

Please tell me you''re not serious otherwise I might do something desperate . . . [:''(]

 

[Hog 0]

At least it provides accomodation for the majority of our First Team, who after all are only with us temporarily lol

[nutty nigel 7,619]

You''d all be amazed how many people thought the hotel was a good idea back when the decisions were made. Does anyone know how much money we wasted on it?

 

[Thecanaryfan 0]

[quote user="Phil E Stein"]Well said, Walt. By the way, did you enjoy Gran Torino, Canary Fan?[/quote]

In the words of Glenn Roeder....."I thought it was terrific"

Eastwoods last acting role Im told. Massive shame. What did you think of it?

[Thecanaryfan 0]

[quote user="jbghost"]

The club have stated taht they could build the 2nd tier on the City Stand for not much more than the cost of a corner infill and that would give you a hell of a lot more seats.

[/quote]

Where did they state this? Or are you talking absolute balony?

[Thecanaryfan 0]

[quote user="Big Dave"]

Short sighted unimaginitive pillock!

Obviously no understanding of why capacity is virtually never 100% full at any stadium, or how big an Ambulance or fire engine is!

The club missed a golden opportunity to improve the stadium and have the hotel.

[/quote]

LOL. Well said!

[0ridgemanddMMyyyy0Falseen-USTrue 0]

Whats the problem matches the standard of football served up over the last few seasons.

[PurpleCanary 5,580]

[quote user="TheCanaryFan"][quote user="jbghost"]

The club have stated taht they could build the 2nd tier on the City Stand for not much more than the cost of a corner infill and that would give you a hell of a lot more seats.

[/quote]

Where did they state this? Or are you talking absolute balony?

[/quote]You would an expert to confirm this, but the club did say that. Its point, which is where you would need an expert, is that corner infills are apparently more difficult to build than straight stands (or extra tiers) and the cost per seat is much higher.I cannot remember what the figures were but - as a very rough example - it was something like £2m for 1,000 extra seats in an infill as against £4m or £5m for 4,000 to 5,000 extra seats with an extra tier on the City Stand.IF that is so, and it is a question of one or the other, then it does make sense. The obvious way to increase capacity is via an extra tier on the City Stand.

[ncfcstar 292]

[quote user="PurpleCanary"]IF that is so, and it is a question of one or the other, then it does make sense. The obvious way to increase capacity is via an extra tier on the City Stand.[/quote]I hope this doesn''t happen, my view of the city is usually far more exciting than the football on the pitch [;)] and a new tier would block it!

[Thecanaryfan 0]

[quote user="PurpleCanary"][quote user="TheCanaryFan"][quote user="jbghost"]

The club have stated taht they could build the 2nd tier on the City Stand for not much more than the cost of a corner infill and that would give you a hell of a lot more seats.

[/quote]

Where did they state this? Or are you talking absolute balony?

[/quote]

You would an expert to confirm this, but the club did say that. Its point, which is where you would need an expert, is that corner infills are apparently more difficult to build than straight stands (or extra tiers) and the cost per seat is much higher.

I cannot remember what the figures were but - as a very rough example - it was something like £2m for 1,000 extra seats in an infill as against £4m or £5m for 4,000 to 5,000 extra seats with an extra tier on the City Stand.

IF that is so, and it is a question of one or the other, then it does make sense. The obvious way to increase capacity is via an extra tier on the City Stand.[/quote]

Sorry Purple, I gave up on your post after the first 23 words.

[shefcanary 2,449]

[quote user="nutty nigel"]

You''d all be amazed how many people thought the hotel was a good idea back when the decisions were made. Does anyone know how much money we wasted on it?

 

[/quote]

Look, the hotel was a good thing - just badly deisgned at the expense of a corner infill!  And yes if there was a tunnel, then it might have reduced the number of seats, but as another poster has said other clubs do it so it is possible to have designed it without significant loss of seating, like having a downward then upward sloping tunnel for instance.  As for segreagation the away fans can technically be put somewhere else other than where they are now - hey how about the corner infill that would have been created - and strategies put in place to minimise loss of seating.  Nothing is unsurmountable with good design and appropriate operational policies.  Just a little more forethought and planning rather than a dash for cash and we could have both a proper corner infill generating match day revenues and a good hotel generating income for the rest of the year. 

As I said previously look at Bramall Lane for the nearest comparator where all the so-called issues discussed in this thread were overcome by good design.