Summit without result

The stadium theater in Graz never ends

The stadium discussions in Graz continue apace.

(Bild: GEPA pictures/ Chris Bauer)

Once again there was no result at the umpteenth summit on Tuesday in the town hall. Now it's time to wait for two feasibility studies.

Less than 24 hours after tens of thousands of fans painted the city center of Graz black and white at Sturm's double party, Graz City Hall was once again the focus of attention for soccer fans.

Thousands celebrated the championship title in the city.

(Bild: Pail Sepp)

While captain Stefan Hierländer and his team signed the Golden Book on Monday, the stadium committee met in exactly the same place on Tuesday, namely in the city senate meeting room. The aim was to find a solution to the endless stadium debate.

The stadium summit in the town hall.

(Bild: Pail Sepp)

The meeting began at 5 p.m. and was attended by city manager Elke Kahr, KPÖ party colleague and finance councillor Manfred Eber and committee chairwoman Daniela Schlüsselberger (SPÖ), as well as representatives from Sturm and GAK and the stadium administration.

Dear City of Graz, please give us the feeling that we are as welcome in this city as the people who celebrate us.

Sturm-Boss Jauk zu Bürgermeisterin Kahr

After a little more than two hours, it was clear - the stadium theater on the Mur is going into the next extension. Once again, no definitive solution was presented.

Ivo Vastic and Sturm once called for David Beckham & Co. in Graz, but the Champions League is no longer being played in Liebenau.

(Bild: © pail josef)

Instead, almost the same options are still in the draw that were already on the table at the first stadium summit last summer. On the one hand, an extension/renovation of the ageing Liebenau Arena or the construction of a new stadium on a greenfield site.

We will not act in this matter in response to calls from the clubs, but need a fair model that everyone can ultimately live with.

Manfred Eber, Stadtrat (KPÖ)

On Tuesday, three locations in the south of Graz for a possible new stadium were presented under the leadership of the city planning department. The site in Puntigam is still in pole position. The cost of a possible new stadium was calculated at between 4000 and 7000 euros per seat - depending on the capacity, this would result in costs of between 80 and 140 million euros including the purchase of land. "The aim is to end up with two stadiums that are financially viable," says Green Party chairman Karl Dreisiebner.

Our aim is that at the end of these discussions we will have two stadiums in Graz that are really financially viable.

Grünen-Klubobmann Karl Dreisiebner

But nothing is fixed yet. And so two feasibility studies are to be commissioned by the municipal council - one for the expansion in Liebenau and then for a new stadium in Puntigam. "Normally, the feasibility study is completed in eight months - we have calculated around 50 months for the realization of both projects, whereby a possible EIA can of course be an additional time factor for the location in Puntigam," explains City Planning Director Bertram Werle.

The new stadium could either be the large solution for both clubs with 25,000 seats or the smaller (GAK) version for 10,000 to 15,000 spectators. "We need a fair solution that both clubs can live with as well as possible at the end of the day," emphasizes city councillor Eber.

In any case, work will begin as soon as possible on installing the security adaptations in Liebenau that have become necessary as a result of GAK's promotion.