Council hand control of Princes Park to Darts

DARTFORD Football Club will take a greater role in the management of Princes Park Community Stadium as the Council transfers a number of key responsibilities to the club, Council Leader Jeremy Kite told the budget meeting today.

The Council will begin handing over stadium management responsibilities in a series of planned phases aimed at increasing the Ryman League Division One North club’s control of its home ground and enhancing its role as a provider of community sport at the new Princes Park facilities.

Jeremy Kite, Leader of Dartford Borough Council, said in his statement to www.dartford.gov.uk: “Since the opening of Princes Park in November 2006, Dartford Football Club has proved that it has the ability to run a complex sporting facility.

“Our aim in building Princes Park was to boost pride in the town, rescue our local team and open up new opportunities for young people to build character and discipline in superb sporting surroundings. We have exceeded our wildest expectations and the stadium has helped improve the town in so many ways.

“Just look at how far we have come. The Darts are top of the league and challenging for promotion, hundreds of young people use the community pitch and thousands of local people attend home fixtures. Princes Park has been a phenomenal success.

“I firmly believe that the Club and its supporters are better placed than anyone to take this magnificent asset forward and we’re not the sort of Council that wants to bask in past successes.

"I want to move on and create new opportunities for all sorts of people across Dartford – not just in sport but in facilities for the elderly, families, those with disabilities and young people.

“We have been talking to the club for many months and it is clear that they are keen and ready to take the stadium on and sometimes it just makes sense to trust the people who use and love it. I think most people want us Councils to keep out of their lives, not control every detail of it.”

“We plan to transfer responsibility for Princes Park to the Club in a series of planned stages that protects their interests and protects ours. My colleagues and I are enormously proud to have done our bit and it is wonderful to think that the stadium will increasingly be guided by people who love it as much as we do.”

The Council will retain ownership of the stadium to protect the interest of the taxpayer and safeguard the future of the facility - an arrangement which prevents any recurrence of the circumstances which saw the loss of the Club’s previous Watling Street ground more than 15 years ago.

Club co-chairman David Skinner, speaking EXCLUSIVELY to www.kentishfootball.co.uk when the news broke tonight, added: “This is a long-term thing, it’s the long term aim. We haven’t discussed the details with the Council yet.

“There’s not a lot more to say, we’re going into detailed discussions on how we accept the added responsibilities.”

But one thing he could say was the excellent position that Tony Burman’s side find themselves in - eight points clear at the top of the table with 10 games to go.

“Last week was really two tremendous away performances and confidence is high and everyone’s bubbling,” said Mr Skinner.

And he added: “March is a very critical time and if we get through March undefeated that will be enough. The top teams have to play each other so that should sort everything out.

“If you look at the league at the moment it’s looking very much the top three breaking away from everyone else.”

Dartford, sixteen league games unbeaten, thumped Arlesey Town (4-0) and Waltham Abbey (5-0) on their travels last week and victory over third placed challenges Ware on Easter Saturday, could wrap up the title.

“Ware have still got to play (second placed) Sudbury and Redbridge twice,” said the chairman.

Visit Dartford's websites:  www.dartfordfc.co.uk & www.dartfordfootballclub.co.uk

Council quotes courtesy of www.dartford.gov.uk