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The All England Club has received official approval from the Greater London Authority to build 39 new tennis courts, including a new 8k seater show court with retractable roof, on the protected open land opposite the Wimbledon Park despite concerns raised by the nearby local residents. The site known as the former Wimbledon Park Golf Club sits across the road from the current Grand Slam grounds in the SW19 area.
Following a long and heated discussion at the City Hall in London, Wimbledon received the go-ahead to set in motion the controversial expansion plan of its venue, which will see it grow almost triple in size. According to the report in the BBC, Jules Pipe, the London deputy mayor, made the decision that the “significant” community and economic benefits will outweigh the concerns from the locals in regard to the negative impact of the expansion plan on the environment.
Local residents could get a judicial review of Wimbledon's expansion's plan
The local resident along with some politicians, who are against the Wimbledon Park being expanded, could still get a judicial review on the case, but their options are now quite limited. Moreover, Angela Rayner, the Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, boasts the power to get a fresh planning hearing, but she wants the application regarding the case to be determined at a local level.
Jules Pipe, who passed the Wimbledon Park expansion plan, was quoted as saying on the south bank of the River Thames, “These plans for the site of a former private golf course will bring significant benefits to the local area, the wider capital and the UK economy, providing increased access to open green space and sport, new parkland and a host of new jobs.”
Meanwhile, the All England Club stated that there will be a 23-acre public park in place of the private golf course along with a minimum of seven grass courts for the community, which is a benefit of the expansion.
