TISA notes the recent statement made by TCFC informing us
that the club has finalised an agreement to ground share with Torquay United at
Plainmoor for season 2016/17. Whilst we
welcome finally having some clarity as to where we will be playing our home games
next season, we remain concerned that the agreement is for only one year and
with full planning consent outstanding on Treyew Road and Silver Bow and no
certainty over when or even if we will ever move to Silver Bow, that still
leaves the football club potentially homeless at the end of next season.
In light of our concerns above we therefore call upon
Chairman and Co-owner Peter Masters to answer the following questions:
1.
Why was the ground share agreement limited to
one year only?
2.
What specifically is causing the delays in
getting full planning consent to both Treyew Road and Silver Bow?
3.
What is the contingency plan in the event that
Silver Bow is not ready for occupation at the end of next season as seems
likely?
4.
How much longer are Helical Retail funding the
day-to-day running of the club and (given that any gate receipts from our time
at Plainmoor would likely not even cover the rental costs, let alone the full
running costs of the club) how are you planning on funding the club going
forward?
5.
What are the conditions under which the debt you
and the co-owner have put into the club in the form of Director’s loans (which
is understood to be approximately £750K) are repaid to you by Helical Retail or
otherwise written off?
6.
Outside of the ground share agreement with
Torquay United, do you or any other Directors of TCFC have any direct business
relationship with Torquay United Football Club or Plainmoor Ltd or made any
investment into either company? Do you or any other Directors of TCFC have any
plans to further develop a business relationship with either company?
Furthermore and whilst we may now have to accept that we are
moving to Torquay, come what may, next season, we certainly do not accept that
sufficient effort has been put in over the last 18 months to properly explore
any opportunities to ground share in Cornwall.
Of course we recognise that this would not be possible without
significant funding of a 'Cornish' solution and we equally recognise the
ridiculous scenario that the club currently finds itself in, having to pay out
approximately £100K for infrastructure at Treyew Road, only to knock it all
down a few weeks later when we vacate the ground for ever. This money could have contributed towards a
'Cornish' solution which would have benefited both Truro City and its fans by
keeping the club playing in Cornwall and also benefited the club in Cornwall
whose ground we would have shared.
Surely this would have improved Truro City's standing in the community
and help attract further sponsorship and funding.
Finally, TISA reiterates its statements made on December
21st and November
16th 2015 where we called for Mr
Masters to keep his word and leave a legacy for the city of Truro and its
football club supporters by placing the playing surface at Silver Bow into a
properly governed Supporters Trust to
protect it for future generations.
We note the interview he gave on BBC Radio Cornwall recently (01/03/2016)
when he said he would "leave a legacy" and we therefore call upon him
to detail what this legacy will be and how it will be delivered.
Simon Birch – Truro Independent Supporters Association (TISA)
Secretary
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