The 1st images of Herzog & de Meuron’s proposed revamp of Chelsea FC’s London stadium have emerged as portion of a 3-day public consultation.
The Swiss firm led by Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron is doing work with London architecture firm Lifschutz Davidson Sandilands on the overhaul of the football club’s 41,837-seat Stamford Bridge stadium in west London, aiming to enhance spectator capacity to 60,000.
The plans include the addition of four new stands, in accordance to reports. But rather than present day steel structures – like Herzog & de Meuron’s lately finished Bordeaux stadium – the types reference gothic architecture, with brick buttresses, ribs and pillars.
The intention is to reference Westminster Abbey cathedral, which is believed to have after been part of the same district as the 14th-century bridge that the stadium requires its name from.
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A new bridge is also included in the proposals to pay out tribute to the ground’s background, which will carry supporters to the stadium from the adjacent Fulham Street.
The football club 1st exposed ideas to redevelop its current stadium in June 2014, obtaining previously explored alternatives for new grounds at Earls Court, and on the south side of the River Thames at Battersea Energy Station.
Lifschutz Davidson Sandilands was initially appointed by Chelsea FC proprietor Roman Abramovich to explore options that would let the club to remain at Stamford Bridge, with Herzog & Meuron joining the task later.
Masterplanner Aecom, structural engineer Schlaich Bergermann & Companion and transport consultant WSP have now all been brought on board, suggesting that Abramovich is serious about staying at the club’s existing grounds.
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Built in 1876, Stamford Bridge was developed by Scottish architect Archibald Leitch and was initially employed as an athletics club. It has undergone many renovations considering that then.
Herzog & de Meuron, which famously created the Bird’s Nest stadium for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, has also finished football stadiums in Munich and Basel. The company was also concerned in the now-axed ideas for a new Portsmouth FC stadium.
