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Ambience - Wimbledon 2021

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Wimbledon make breakthrough with controversial expansion plans approved by deputy mayor

Matthew Johns
Matthew Johns
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The Wimbledon Championships have made a major breakthrough in their bid to expand the grounds of the tournament, after plans were approved by the deputy mayor of London despite protests.Since 2018, the All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC) have been wanting to expand the grounds after having their £65 million bid for the Wimbledon Park Golf Club accepted. It has been quite the back-and-forth process since for the AELTC, who had planning permission approved last year by the local Merton Council, but rejected by Wandsworth Council, who described it as an ‘inappropriate development’. This led to the decision being taken to the Greater London Authority, which was chaired by deputy mayor Jules Pipe, who witnessed a hearing at the City Hall earlier this month before coming to the final decision yesterday to approve the plans. When justifying his decision, Pipe outlined the economic benefits as the key factor, “In summary, the proposed development would facilitate very significant benefits. I agree with my officers that these benefits clearly outweigh the harm.”
Wimbledon plan to build 39 more tennis courts, that includes an 8,000 seater stadium on the land, as they bid to bring back qualifying to the main site. The qualifying draw currently takes place in Roehampton, which is approximately three miles away from the main site, to preserve the pristine grass courts prior to the main draw getting underway. And when speaking to BBC Sport, AELTC chair Deborah Jevans admitted that this approval allows Wimbledon to keep up with the other Grand Slam tournaments, who all hold qualifying on the same site as the main draw. Jevans also gave an indication as to when these plans could be completed, “Clearly we are very, very pleased – it has been a long journey to this point. Equally, there is a journey to go through before we start to build. “Our ambition, if everything falls into place, is that we could see tennis balls being hit on that site between 2030 and 2033.” There have been many objections to these plans taking place from both local residents and environmentalists, concerned by the number of trees set to be cut down in the expansion process. However, there is still a possibility that those against the expansion can take the decision to judicial review and potentially even the supreme court.
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