Gloucestershire County Cricket win approval for £10m revamp of Bristol ground

Gloucestershire County Cricket Club has been given permission to go ahead with a £10million revamp of its Bristol home.

The planning consent to redevelop the County Ground is a massive step towards international cricket matches continuing to be staged at the venue.

After last night's decision by city councillors, the club's chief executive Tom Richardson said: "We are extremely pleased with the result.

"This gives us an opportunity to crack on and get moving with this new development.

"There are still a number of stages and hurdles to deal with but it does give us the opportunity to keep international matches in Bristol."

Tom Appleby from the HowZat? Residents' Group, which opposed the scheme, said: "I think Bristol City Council has been bullied into taking this decision. There is not sufficient demand to justify the existing seating, let alone a 20,000-seat stadium. I think it's scandalous."

The debate by members at the development control committee (north) focused on a new accommodation block for up to 350 students, which would provide the key to finance the scheme.

Some councillors were unhappy about the block because of its expected height up to seven storeys – about 20 metres (60ft) – as it was likely to overshadow nearby listed buildings.

But they also sympathised with the club because they realised the need to upgrade the existing ground.

Planning officer Julia Seaton made clear that the size and appearance of the block would be subject to a separate planning application, which would be put before a future meeting.

Councillor David Kitston (Lib Dem, Bishopston) said he was a lifelong cricket fan but he could not give his backing to the scheme.

He said: "I just think it's asking too much from local people to put up with what is proposed at the moment."

Councillors were told that the club had submitted a viability report, which had been assessed by independent consultants and found to be sound. The contents of the report are confidential but it explains that without the student block, the new development at the stadium site in Nevil Road, Ashley Down, could not go ahead.

Councillor Anthony Negus (Lib Dem, Cotham) said once all the emotion had been taken out of the arguments, what was left was no more than a commercial development.

He said there were too many unanswered questions in the report and called for the issue to be deferred for further talks.

But Councillor Steve Comer (Lib Dem, Eastville) said the current facilities were a hotch-potch of buildings that badly needed replacing with a new stadium.

He said: "The danger is that if building the new stadium is not viable, you will end up with the club relocating somewhere else and we might have something much more unsuitable than what is being proposed."

The new ground would take the current capacity of 16,000 to 20,000, with 18,500 seats and 1,500 temporary places on a grassed area in front of the proposed new pavilion. The club has been playing cricket at the ground since 1888 and international games have been hosted there since 1999.