Caledonian Stadium could be renamed as part of Caley Thistle restructure
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THE Caledonian Stadium could be renamed as part of the continued restructuring of the club.
Paperwork to finalise the transfer of the ownership of three stands, from previous sponsors Tulloch Homes to Caley Thistle, is close to being completed and will allow the board to scope out potential renaming rights.
It forms part of the plans put forward by chairman Graham Rae and the Caley Thistle board, as they look at ways of generating new investment following relegation.
Fees of between £200,000 and £250,000, in rental costs, were estimated by former director Richard Smith as what could be saved by taking ownership of the stands back in May. In the same interview with the Courier, he also speculated that compared to the £900,000 shortfall the Caley Jags faced when they were relegated in 2009, that was likely to be reduced to around £500,000 this time around.
Rae said on Friday that the financial restructuring of the club was close to completion and they were actively seeking new board members, ready for the AGM later this year.
“We’re looking at new ways of marketing the club,” said Rae, who took over as chairman in August. “We’re looking in due course at renaming the ground, as part of the gifting of the stands to Tulloch. The paperwork is nearly done but there’s a lot of moving parts.”
Investment has been forthcoming to cover a cash-flow shortfall, due to delays in receiving the parachute payment from SPFL following relegation and from UEFA for Celtic’s Champions League performances. Both are not expected until later in the season.
Rae and the Caley Jags board have met a number of fans groups to hear their views on how to progress the club, particularly in terms of its infrastructure. The Caley Thistle chairman admitted in years past the club’s capital budget had perhaps not been a priority, compared to the funds allocated to the football side, and as a result parts of the stadium were dated.
A working group is to be setup to co-ordinate the slew of volunteers that have come forward to help out with work around the stadium, with the club shop the most recent, noticeable facelift given to the stadium.
“It’s a much nicer shop, it’s inside and it gets rid of that horrible container outside. For a club of our short but lofty history, it’s nice to have a proper shop inside,” said Rae.
“We’ve had a number of committed supporters offering their services. Blair Smith has launched a Facebook group and we’ve had a lot of work done here. We’ve had people like Dr Ian Smith helping with things more of an administrative nature and there’s been a groundswell of people that have come in to help.
“Given that more collaborative environment, we’re setting up a volunteer steering group. We’ve got a list of things we need to fix and opportunities that come in, so we’re looking to organise the volunteer effort to make sure it’s co-ordinated.
“In the past, a club like ours relied heavily on volunteers and I’m not sure we’ve done as good a job at thanking them. The first task for this new group is to get the volunteers in and give them some recognition, be it a lunch or an evening event, to thank them for their efforts.”
A Facebook group, titled the ICTFC Stadium Development Project, has been set up and details some of the ongoing tasks undertaken, in conjunction with the club. The board will work through the list of what needs fixing or upgrading and what ideas can be carried out, based on the funds and resources required and how urgent the tasks are.
“We’ve been talking with supporters and they’ve told us two things: first was their concerns, issues and complaints. Most were legitimate – the toilet wasn’t working, the food wasn’t right, my seat was broken. Things to do with the infrastructure,” added Rae.
“We’ve been looking at all the things supporters say and the majority of them are legitimate. We’re trying to prioritise those. The other thing they’ve told us is a huge number of ideas that could be improved. We have an equally long list of initiatives and opportunities. We need to move through the list and prioritise those.
“We’ve had a number of suggestions about food serveries, about the sports bar. As ever, we have a whole host of ideas. We’re hoping more of that will allow us to link into the Highlands. We’re very well positioned to take advantage of where we are.
“We’ve taken an opportunity to recalibrate and had all this energy. We’re overwhelmed with the enthusiastic passion of some of the supporters that’s come in. We’re excited about some of the things that are ahead.”
