Ellis Out!!!!!!!!!

[andy villa]

when reading the local plan it is clear that Ellis wants to build a European class staduim which needs more than 50,000 seats and an hotel. He wants this also for his monument to his Ego.

Well after checking with Birmingham council the two planning refernces are

C/04749/97/FUL
C/04147/96/FUL

and asked the following questions

These were granted permission on the 7th June 2000 and as I understand
they have an expiry date of 5 years and thus they are up in June this
year. so can I ask a couple of questions:-

1) Once the permission lapses does the club have to put in a brand new
application ?

2) Is it possible to extend the deadline and under what circumstances can
this be done ?

3) Can work be started on it and then stopped to ensure that the
permission does not lapse ?

the answers were as follows

1) If the planning permission lapses/expires then the applicants would need
to submit a new planning applicantion if they wish to proceed with the
proposal.

2) Yes it is possible to extend the 5 year commencment date by submitting a
variation of conditions application i.e. condition 27 on PA C/04749/97/FUL
as follows; The development hereby permitted must be begun before the
expiration of five years from the date of this permission. If The
applicants are unable to commence works with the 5 year expiration date
they may choose to submit a variation on conditions application, but the
application must be submitted before the expiration of the 5 years.

3) The conditions requires works to be commenced not completed, therefore
the applicants may choose to start work within the 5 year period but not
necessarily complete the proposal.

So to sum this up for you

- Douggie wants to build the stand and hotel

- He will have money from the Tesco sale (but not the Serpertine site as no planning permission even being sought for)

- But wants to build a new training ground, hotel and stand

- Planning permission runs out in June and Doug HAS to start before that because of time and money reasons he would have to resubmit the plans. Also on top of this it ccould be that a new one would be denied.

Therefore my considered view based on these facts is that

Any extra money into Villa away from the pitch will be funnelled straight into the monuments. This will not affect intially the sqaud except that if the Tesco money is less than say £10m then all three could not be built.

Ellis will therefore not sanction any player spending (thus the wage cuts) as he knows money will have to be borrowed especially for the Stand.

you have the reason why we have not took advantage of previous polcies designed for this particular period.

It is so sad to see the club run like this and I have asked Jon Fear (VFC) to take a look into this to see if something can be done.

this is incompetence.

[andy villa]

Doug Ellis has insisted that the failure of the club to sell a block of land to a supermarket giant will not impinge on David O'Leary's transfer kitty.

Birmingham City Council's planning department yesterday dealt the club a blow when they refused to grant planning permission for the store, preferring an adjacent site.

The club say they are considering an appeal after putting three years of work into developing the so-called Siemens site.

Ellis had promised O'Leary £4million for players, plus money made on their final league position and a portion from the land sale.

Now he will see to it that the manager's transfer funds are not cut.

For his part, Ellis has already stressed that it is only a matter of time before Villa are able to get planning permission to develop the site.

A club statement released to the stock exchange yesterday read: "Aston Villa PLC announced on January 28 with the release of its interim result that it has for some time been working with a leading retailer, to exploit the Club's property assets.

"Its application to build a supermarket on its Brookvale Road site has now been considered by the City's planning committee and planning permission has been refused.

The club will consider an appeal and continue to look at further opportunities for the site and the club's other land assets."

Ellis knows Villa are sitting on a "gold mine" with their land, with the two sites likely to raise up to £25million on the market.

The chairman added: "We are the exception to the rule because we own 100 acres of freehold land.

"We have two pieces of land which will earn us £20million-£25million if we get planning consent. Sooner or later we will.

"It doesn't worry me if we are delayed a bit because we still own the land and God isn't making any more.

"We are sitting on that gold mine."

[andy villa]

VFC note the planning permission refusal for the Siemans plot of land and have also discovered that the plans for the Serpentine plot of land are now on hold at the council. (See appendix). Both of these plots of land were what Mr Ellis based his ‘jam tomorrow’ financial promises on. We now question where the money will come from to not only update the clubs training facilities but also to strengthen the squad. The failure of the board's plans to raise much needed revenue has highlighted the folly of discouraging outside investment into the club for fear of Mr Ellis losing his stranglehold over Aston Villa.

The supporters of Aston Villa are left with a club failing to match its rivals both on and off the pitch and with no hope of improvement in fortunes, unless the short sighted and self-serving policies of Mr Ellis are reversed. VFC believes it is absolutely essential for the future prospects and prosperity of Aston Villa that Mr Ellis immediately signals that he is willing to listen to offers from outside groups or persons to invest in the club.

We are sure that the failure of the one planning application and the delay in the other has dealt a severe blow to the delusions of Mr Ellis that he is the only person who could possibly run Aston Villa and that he is in control and on top of events. He clearly isn't. The plans to upgrade the training ground were a key element in attracting and retaining top class players at all stages of their careers from youth to first team level. Without the revenue to perform the upgrade, those plans are left in tatters

Jonathan Fear, spokesman for VFC said today that ‘this failure has created a huge black hole into which Villa's prospects have fallen. Placing all of Villa's eggs into the property development basket has failed, as did his promise of a golden future from our Youth FA Cup winning team, many of who have since moved on. These failures have shown the inability of Mr Ellis to progress Aston Villa as a football club and as a business. Many supporters feel that a turning point has been reached and that the need for new leadership at Aston Villa has been starkly exposed. For the good of the club Mr Ellis must now be held accountable for the failures and should step down and actively seek new investors.’


Quote:
Appendix:

Serpentine Land:

Outline application to establish the principle of mixed-use development comprising (C3 use up to 24,000m²), office (B1 use up to 7,000m²), Leisure (D1 use class up to 7,000m²) and retail (A1, A2, A3 uses class up to 900m²). All detailed matters reserved for later consideration.

The application is currently on hold and cannot be accepted in its current format until the applicant(s) amend the plans they have submitted to clearly show their proposals. Once done, the application should come off hold and the Public Participation period should begin. Members of the public who are affected will be consulted for 21 days, at this time you should be able view the plans at your local viewing office.

Siemans Plot:

Further information available:

link

It appears another application for another plot of land is deemed more appropriate for a retail unit leaving the value of the Siemans land as more industrial than commercial, thus producing a far smaller revenue.

‘This scheme needs to be assessed in relation to its own planning merits, particularly retail and industrial land policy and in tandem with the retail scheme at Aston Lane. Many of the issues are common to both proposals;

- Retail need for a store of this size has not been fully demonstrated, however the Siemans site proposal has more convenience and significantly more comparison floor space.

- Both result in the loss of employment land, but the Siemans site would lead to a greater loss in site area and it has a better relationship with the development at the Hub for employment purposes.

- Both deliver similar direct regeneration benefits to Witton. Although the applicants for the Siemans site have suggested they could also deliver schemes on the Aston Lane site and Serpentine Site, these additional gains would be over and above what would be necessary to support a retail scheme in Witton. They can therefore only be accorded limited weight in the determination of this application. The same applies to the additional financial contribution.

- There are no overriding technical reasons that would prevent development of the site.

The key difference between the two proposals is the relationship of the sites to the existing centre and the smaller store size at Aston Lane. Aston Lane has a better connectivity to the centre and therefore a greater opportunity to produce spin off benefits to the existing retailers in Witton. Its split of convenience/comparison goods better reflects the functions of this local centre, providing day-to-day shopping facilities.

It is acknowledged that the applicant is a major investor in the area and the City Council would want to continue working positively with Aston Villa on its other land interests in the Witton area. In this case however, concerns with the policy implications of the proposal are significant. Given that only one scheme can be supported, it is considered that the Aston Lane site can more satisfactorily deliver the desired benefits to Witton. As such, it follows that this application for Siemans cannot be supported.’

Furthermore:

Planning Applications: C/04749/97/FUL, C/04147/96/FUL

Planning permission for the North Stand and Hotel developments runs out June 2005. They either have to start building the projects or lose the permission.

[andy villa]

June’s copy of Four Two Four includes an interesting one to one session with Graham Taylor. The following two questions and Graham’s replies relate to his two spells at Villa Park:

Was Deadly Doug Ellis as tight as legend has it? Did he ever buy you half a bitter from his own money?

GT: “He never bought me half a pint, no. And I’d imagine if he did it would have been with Villa’s money (laughs). I’ve much more time for Doug Ellis than people probably think because of how I left Villa the second time. The kindest way to sum him up is that he’s prepared to spend enough money to make you good, but never enough money to make you excellent”.

“There’s a story, I was going to save it for my autobiography, but you’ve got me started. In 1990, when we finished runners-up, Doug came up to me and said: “You’ve got £1m to spend”. I could not believe it. It was only three weeks to the transfer deadline and I thought I’d got nothing. Now £1m was a lot of money then and I knew my front three had no cover so I tried to sign Teddy Sheringham from Millwall. They said no so I went back to Doug. He said, “You’ve got £1.4m” (laughs incredulously). I knew Millwall wouldn’t sell Sheringham even at that price, so I offered £750,000 for their other striker, Tony Cascarino, but they turned that down too. So I told Doug to forget it, to keep the money. Next thing I knew he’s offered £1.4m for Cascarino, which they’ve obviously accepted. It turned out Doug would have had to pay tax on that £1.4m, and he’d rather pay completely over the asking price than see the tax man get his hands on any of his money! That’s just the way Doug was.”

[hanuma]

bravo....i ****ing hate the tax man.

although....1 mill on cascarino.....that stretches it a bit.,

[andy villa]

Bruce Langham sensationally resigned as Chief Executive of Villa barely 12 months after taking over because of a "difference of opinion" with Doug Ellis.

The 57 year old, who was at Fulham for two years until 2003, announced his departure to the stock exchange yesterday.

A club spokesman stated "It was a difference of opinion over the strategy for taking the club forward."

It is believed they fell out over sweeping redundancies that Langham wanted to get rubber-stamped after a lenthy review of the clubs off field operations.

One job under threat is that of long serving commercial manager Abdul Rashid, who may now find that he has won a reprieve.

And that could spell trouble for Marketing Manager Phil Smith. Rashid had been told to reapply for a newly defined role which could end a 28-year full time association with Villa.

Langham, who undertook his duties on May 10th 2004, announced to the press on his arrival that he was not going to be Ellis 'nodding dog'.

Only recently he stated that he could only run the club with the support of his fellow board members.

Langham said then "There is a conception that Aston Villa is Doug Ellis and Doug Ellis runs Aston Villa".

"The strategic plan i put to the board was approved by the whole board and that's how the club is run. The bottom line is that i am Chief Executive of a plc and have a responsibility to run the club in a proper manner and i can only do that in co-operation with the board. Aston Villa is not run by one man.

With rumours flying round that Villa are split down the middle between employees who have backed Langham over the past year and those who are still staunch supporters of the Chairman there could be more exits on the cards.

[andy villa]

It may be lazy journalism on a quiet news day (although every day in the transfer window is usually a quiet day for Villa fans in transfer windows) but Graham Hill in today’s Sunday Mercury offers an opinion on why Bruce Langham may have quit the club and it might just have a ring of truth to it.

It appears it may not have been about protecting the jobs of some of our chairman’s sycophants at Villa Park (as I always thought that our chairman’s only concern was for protecting his own job) but it may have been all about money (or the lack of it).

Graham Hill writes, “there have been suggestions that he (Bruce) angered chairman Doug Ellis by announcing Villa’s intention to increase their spending in the transfer market. Langham was not believed to be authorised by Ellis to do that and the chairman made it known he was unhappy that a figure of £20m had been made public. A wave of redundancies at Villa Park, which would have seen some of Ellis’s trusted employees leaving the club, did not help Langham’s cause”.

Although the £20m figure has never been quoted as such, it has been used in the press so did Bruce mention this figure off the record to reporters? What it did was raise the expectation of fans and make some believe that the word ambition had for once been introduced at boardroom level. What we seem to have had is a power struggle between a man in his 80s who is unwilling to hand over any responsibility at the club and a chief executive who felt that that title had actually meant something. Past history at B6 shows that at present there can only ever be one winner in such an argument.

I would suggest that our chairman was happy to be linked with players such as Bellamy in the knowledge that they will never be signed and that it might boost season ticket sales, but who found quoting a figure for transfer expenditure this summer put an expectation that he would be making millions available where he had no real intention of doing so. With £1.5m spent the figures speak for themselves. And whilst we wait for a player we all know will say “No” to get round to saying it, other teams take steps to sign other potential targets such as Forsell and Parker. When the window closes with the possible usual £4m net spend rather than the mythical £20m (or something close to it), our chairman will be aware that the mere mention of significant funds being made available this summer, of a list of players with crosses against their names rather than ticks and with eventually nothing being there to show for it on the pitch next season, will once again put him under the sort of pressure that he does not want from the fans.

Of course, we may never know the real reason that Bruce left, as our chairman has made sure that it would cost our former CEO big money to tell us. But, for me and I’m sure the rest of us it is clear that it is down to one man. As Graham Hill adds, “Many observers feel that Langham was not always allowed to do the job he was brought in to do. And it seems that, when he tried, there was an inevitable parting of the ways”.

He also discusses who might take over as CEO, alongside a chairman who “is always likely to put pressure on both manager and chief executive despite his advancing years” and adds “although there is no official timescale on when a new chief executive will be appointed, Stride is unlikely to be the man to get the job permanently”. Isn’t it bad enough that Steve Stride is being mentioned as an option? Come to think of it, who else would be prepared to work under the limitations that the chairman puts his CEO under? The only option I can see to Steve Stride is the chairman himself!

[andy villa]

contradiction of summer money....


FIRST, THERE'S ELLIS PROMISING 4 MILLION FOR SIGNINGS AND THEN PATRONISING THE MANAGER:

Villa boss set for cash windfall (18 March)
[...] Chairman Ellis has promised that up to three new faces will arrive and he has hinted at high quality.
He said: "You mustn't rely entirely on kids, we know that. We've got to have experience. The fact remains that we will be purchasing a player.
"I know one but I'm not telling who but there's definitely one and possibly two or three in the summer months.
"He (the first summer target) can play a bit. But it's something that cannot possibly be considered until the first of June because of the window.
"We will have our midfield steel back when Gavin McCann is fit.
What we need is an absolute striker who can score goals for the love of it like Juan Pablo Angel did last year."
Villa are refusing to discuss the names of their targets in public, but they are determined to act as soon as the season ends.
Ellis explained: "Djemba-Djemba cost £2million so there's £4million available and, subject to where we lie at the end of the season, there could be more.
"And again, we have two pieces of land which will earn us £20million-£25million if we get planning. Sooner or later we will.
"We are sitting on that gold mine, but it mustn't all go on players. There's the training ground to consider, which will cost £8million."
Ellis is at great pains to point out that his relationship with O'Leary is a harmonious one.
He said: "He doesn't need to talk to the Press about the lack of players, the shortage of squad and all the rest of it, I know the situation.
"If we beat Birmingham, and I expect we will on the basis of what I saw from them at Albion, then we are in the frame for the top six.
"The media will not drive a wedge between the manager and me. The fact remains that I respect him as a good manager, with good man-management skills.
"He's full of blarny. He's a typical Irishman but he's alright.
"I let him get on with it. The team is his domain. I don't interfere."



SECOND, THERE'S O'LEARY'S DELIGHT AT BEING TOLD HE'LL HAVE ENOUGH MONEY TO BUY "FOUR TOP QUALITY PLAYERS":
O'Leary to land £20m summer boost (1 April)

Aston Villa boss David O'Leary has been handed "substantial funds" - believed to be around £20m to buy new players.
O'Leary, who has worked with a modest budget at the club, had been expecting £4m to spend in the summer.
"It is fantastic news. It is a big surprise but the club needs substantial investment and I've been told I'm going to get that in the summer," he said.
"A few players I was interested in, I had forgotten about because I wouldn't have had the money for them."
O'Leary added: "But I've been told I'm going to get these funds to pursue four top quality players that this club needs.
"I think the club, the fans and the fans need this. With these four players, you can then start to push for a Uefa Cup place.
"Then over the next few years with a steady investment each year, maybe two quality players each summer, maybe we can push for a Champions League spot."
The manager added that the extra money is a massive boost for him as he looks to advance the club.
"Personally this has given me a massive lift," added O'Leary.
"I was determined to keep going whatever the circumstances and make the best of what I had and what was available."
Villa are currently 11th in the Premiership and O'Leary added that injury problems this season had highlighted the need to boost the squad.
"It would have been lovely if that investment had been made last summer but I don't know if they thought, with us finishing sixth last year, that we could do the same this season," said O'Leary. [...]



NEXT, ELLIS IS ANNOYED AT O'LEARY FOR MAKING PUBLIC THE IDEA THAT WE WOULD SPEND MONEY THIS SUMMER, AND BOTH DENY ANY SPECIFIC FIGURE:
O'Leary rejects Ellis rift claims (15 April)

Aston Villa manager David O'Leary insists there is no rift with chairman Doug Ellis over summer transfer cash.
Ellis hit out after O'Leary said there would be "substantial investment."
The veteran chairman said: "The likes of Freddy Shepherd at Newcastle and Everton's Bill Kenwright are laughing - they cannot believe it."
But O'Leary revealed: "It was the decision of the chairman and the board that I made public that I will have money to spend in the summer."
O'Leary made the announcement ahead of the game at Newcastle after renewed criticism of Villa's hierarchy, with reports suggesting he would be handed £20m..
But Ellis was unhappy, saying: "You don't make announcements saying what you will be spending on players.
"I haven't spoken about any figures. I wouldn't talk about money and never have done. You'll see what happens."
O'Leary attempted to clear up the confusion, insisting: "I can state categorically that there is no rift between myself and the chairman and our relationship is fine.
"It is wrong to suggest there is a problem between myself and the chairman because of this.
"I never disclosed the figure to the media that I will have available to spend and I can't stop them speculating about figures.
"Like I've said before I welcome the fact I will have money to spend because the squad does need strengthening and I will be looking to bring in quality players."



NOW O'LEARY SPEAKS OF "REALISTIC", RATHER THAN "QUALITY", TARGETS:
O'Leary eyes Villa new-boys (May 7)

[O'Leary] said: "I've given the chairman some names and he will pursue them now with the clubs. They are realistic targets for this level.
"They are not the sort of targets that would make him keel over. They are realistic for this club. But if we can get them in, then the fans would have cause to be excited. I think they are gettable players.
"If we can get them in, we will certainly have a better chance of competing with the Middlesbroughs and Tottenhams of this world for a Uefa Cup spot.
"Ideally you'd love to have your new players in before the start of pre-season but that seldom seems to happen and you get a lot of bluffing at first."



ELLIS CONTINUES TO INSIST HE WILL GIVE THE MANAGER "SIGNIFICANT FUNDS", WHILE O'LEARY SOUNDS LESS CONVINCED (May 9):

The chairman said: "There's no doubt about it, we have experienced what can only be described as a topsyturvy season. Getting into Europe is important for a club as big as Aston Villa because it opens up so many avenues."
Ellis insists he will not interfere in the buying process.
"I have always applied the principle of allowing the manager to choose the players he wished to buy or sell and I've had the job of finding the money.
"We have given the manager significant funds for the purchase of new players but please don't ask me to disclose the names of the players we want."
Villa are awaiting planning permission to build a new training complex on a 24-acre site, with five pitches, at Bodymoor Heath.
Ellis added: "This season David O'Leary has chosen six players who have progressed through our youth team and praise is due to our Academy Manager, Bryan Jones, and to all his staff. We should also not forget the efforts of our reserve team, coached by Kevin MacDonald, who finished runners-up."
O'Leary added: "I am hoping I will have a busy summer. I know the players I want and I have told the chairman about them, so I will now leave it up to him."



NEXT, Ellis: I'm working flat out (May 18th)
"We are working on players. I am confident we can get some of them." etc



FINALLY, THE BIZARRE DAY WHICH STARTED WITH Langham: We Have the Cash (May 20)...

Speaking recently, Langham said: "In past years we have had one-off hits on the balance sheet - crudely, getting rid of players who shouldn't have been there in the first place.
"Over the last two years we have had to dispose of players. Unfortunately if you sign a player on a three or a four-year contract, and you want them to go, you have to pay them out.
"That's not the case now, we have washed all of that through the books." Villa have made drastic cuts to their wage bill this season after releasing a glut of players.
Langham added: "I know what we pay our players and our wage bill has come down quite dramatically.
"However it will go up again next year because of the strategy of making a substantial investment in the squad over the summer.
"But at the same time over the next three years we have plans to increase the revenue dramatically - and that's what you have to do as a business."

...AND ENDED WITH Langham quits Villa (May 20).

Subsequently, a Villa spokesman said: "The decision of Mr Langham is the result of a difference of opinion over the strategy of the way the club is going forward."

[hanuma]

so in summary....

[andy villa]

more contradictory bollocks and lies....

[hanuma]

nice.

[andy villa]

For Immediate Release 29 July 2005

ASTON VILLA PLC

PRELIMINARY RESULTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MAY 2005

Aston Villa PLC is pleased to announce preliminary results for the year ended 31 May 2005

Operational Performance

• 10th place in FA Premier League (2004: 6th)

• Average league attendances up by 2% at 37,354 (2004: 36,622)

• Successful partnership with new Club Sponsor - DWS Investments

• Enhanced contract with kit supplier, Hummel International

• 3.2% growth in merchandise sales

Financial Performance

• Turnover fell by £4.3m to £51.6m (2004: £55.9m)

• Merit award for 10th place £5.4m (2004: 6th £8.2m)

• Payroll costs down by 2%: £33.1m (2004: £33.8m)

• Amortisation of players’ registrations reduced to £6.5m (2004: £12.2m)

• Loss before player sales £1.9m (2004: £4.9m)

• Loss before tax reduced by £8.2m to £2.5m (2004: £10.7m)

• Net cash outflow from player trading of £6.4m (2004: £2.8m)

• Net funds of £0.6m at year end (2004: Net funds £2m)

• Equity shareholders’ funds of £36.0m (2004: £37.7m)

In his statement to shareholders, Chairman Doug Ellis, said:

“The past twelve months has been a mixture of highs and lows from a business and personal perspective. As I write this statement I am well on the way to recovery and look forward to my return.

It is very pleasing to report that we have improved upon previous years’ net results by some margin. The balance sheet remains one of the strongest in our sector. We have an excellent financial platform from which to move forward.

The Board remains firmly committed to supporting the Manager in his quest to bring regular European football back to Villa Park by providing him with the maximum level of financial support within our overall resources.”

Chairman’s Statement 2005

Introduction

The past twelve months has been a mixture of highs and lows both from a business and persona perspective.

On the financial front it is very pleasing to report that we have improved upon previous years’ net results by some margin and were closer to a return to profitability but on the football side we failed to achieve our goal of qualification for European competition. I refer in greater detail to both these issues later on in my statement.

In May Bruce Langham, CEO, decided to leave the Group. The Management team was, however, very quickly strengthened by the appointment in June 2005 of Stuart Ryan as Sales Director. Stuart has overall responsibility for all the commercial activities of the Group and brings with him a wealth of marketing and sales experience gained with some of the world’s leading sportswear brands.

On a personal level in April I was delighted to receive from Her Majesty the Queen the award of an OBE for ser