• Holland And Barrett Vitamins Gibraltar Offer

Apr 04 - Europa Point Stadium Protest Group Collects Over 5000 Signatures

europa point stadium The Save Europa Point Group have released a statement regarding their petition against the proposed GFA Europa Point stadium. It reads as follows:

Over 5000 people have now signed a petition to prevent the destruction of Europa Point by the construction of a football stadium.  This petition has been organised by a group of concerned citizens known as The Save Europa Point Group, and signatures have been collected on paper and online.  These will be presented to the official body, The Development and Planning Commission (DPC) on Tuesday 8th April.

The DPC has also received an unprecedented number of written complaints – more than 50 – and many more people wrote in to the DPC after the Viewpoint debate was aired on GBC on 20th March 2014.  Unfortunately by then it was too late for their objections to be accepted.
A SEP Group spokesperson states: “We have come to realise that a majority were silently unhappy with the project, and our petition has given them the platform that they needed to express themselves.  It has also served as a catalyst for ideas and debate in the street, online and in the media.”

Many Gibraltarians have contributed alternative suggestions and designs which may be viable, conform to UEFA and FIFA regulations and should therefore be given serious consideration.  If we are to build the ‘Home of Gibraltar Football’, a stadium that will stand for perhaps 100 years, we had better get it right.  The consequences of a mistake would be grave and long term.  It is only fair that we all have a say in the site chosen, and that the entire process is rigorous and transparent.

The group explains that the validity of their campaign is borne out by the number of prominent members of the community who have supported their stance and strengthened their arguments with professional opinions and inventive ideas.  “People flooded the GBC Viewpoint program with E-mails & tweets; each day letters and opinions against the stadium at Europa Point have been printed in the Chronicle and the Panorama.  Numerous online polls also show that the vast majority of people do not want a stadium built at Europa Point”, the spokesperson went on to explain. Furthermore, two of the most influential organisations concerned with protecting the environment of Gibraltar have come out firmly against the siting of a stadium at Europa Point: the Gibraltar Heritage Trust and the Environmental Safety Group.

Individuals from the Save Europa Point Group have followed the official process and made written representations to the DPC; each has been granted a 3-minute slot to address the committee on Tuesday 8th April.  Furthermore, the SEP Group has shown a willingness to cooperate with the official process by agreeing to the DPC request to make group presentations where possible in order to expedite matters.  The group has also written to the GFA via their Europa Point Stadium website, again following the due process.

The SEP Group supports football and sport, and welcomes Gibraltar’s membership as UEFA’s Team 54.  What it objects to a stadium at Europa Point, rushed through without proper due diligence and public consultation.  The group asks: “Where is the Environmental Impact Study? Where is the detailed Traffic Plan? Where is the detailed Business Plan?”  The FAQs in the GFA promotional website are numerous but inadequate: they do not address any of these or other questions.  They do not allay the legitimate concerns of many Gibraltarians, and make light of the many real and insoluble problems that a stadium at Europa Point would cause.  Saying ‘there is nowhere else to build it’ is not a valid or credible argument, and we should not accept it.

The SEP group adds that if anyone wants to sign the petition,  please follow the link below.  The group will be conducting a peaceful gathering of concerned citizens outside the John Mackintosh Hall as from 8:30am on Tuesday 8th April.  The spokesperson adds: “Please come and show your support, and hopefully we can save Europa Point!”