Nottingham Forest City ground latest as new leader of city council plans to ‘work her magic’

The head of the city’s council will get in touch with Evangelos Marinakis, the owner of Nottingham Forest, to have urgent discussions about the future of the City Ground.

In an attempt to use magic to convince them to remain in their current residence, the newly elected head of the council has made an appointment to meet with Tom Cartledge, the club’s owner and chairman.
It follows persistent communication breakdowns between the club and the council regarding the rent and lease situation at the City Ground. NottinghamshireLive has covered the club’s search for new possible venues in-depth. Marinakis is leading the charge in this regard.

The land’s owner, the city council, supposedly wishes to raise the annual rent from £250,000 to ‘north of a million’. Since the beginning of their talks with the city council, Nottingham Forest has also had the option to purchase the freehold to their stadium for a sum of £10 million.
Neghat Khan, who was formally named David Mellen’s replacement on Monday, May 20, says she wants to have a face-to-face conversation with the team and thinks they can stay at the City Ground.
“I think they should stay at City Ground, and one of my first steps as the new council chairman is to get in touch with the chairman and owner to request a meeting so we can really work things out.” What appears to be the issue?

“The City Ground is steeped in history. You cannot simply move. Going to a new stadium doesn’t guarantee that the atmosphere, feeling, or history will be present. Both the Forest supporters and we don’t want them to leave.”It will take some magic, but I think I can pull it off. One of my first actions as leader will be to write to the owner and chairman of the Forest and request a face-to-face meeting with the goal of shaking hands at the conclusion.”

What David Mellen, the former council leader, said

“It is evident that Nottingham is not without ambition. You could see the ambition there and the reception the club received at the Council House as we celebrated with them if you were in the square when Nottingham Forest did get promoted from the Championship.

“We hope the club can stabilise itself, but based on what the fans have said, it’s obvious that they don’t want to leave Nottingham, and I believe Mr. Marinakis needs to pay close attention to what they have to say. The fans don’t just sing Mist Rolling In From The Trent, but we’re always up for more discussions about how to make the City Ground better and hold more events.”