Apparently it's been 14 years since Dartford FC had their own ground. This is said to be one of the best none league grounds in the country and even has a green roof! Yes, that's right, they have a turf roof....
My son's nursery is just around the corner, so I've been going past it most days since works began, and it looks as if it's going to be on track for the 11th November. I have to say that it's a great project from ecolocal's perspective - for the community, encouraging exercise for all and with excellent transport links (there's a Fastrack stop specifically for the ground) and of course the green roof.
I'm not a football follower my self, but I have to say that this is on the mark. I hope that it's succesful. I'd like to know if there are any more green aspects to the build, so I'll make some enquiries and post them here if there are.
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suttree
Sombrero Fallout 904c2f2f-4e79-40b4-8830-16b4909b1948 The wearer of this fallout will receive many funny looks, but there can be no doubt that this is truly a king Sombrero in a world reduced to poor imitations.
Thanks very much to Paul Burnett, who's provided us with the following information:
"Regarding the "green-ness" of Dartford Football Club's new Princes Park stadium, you may like to be aware that in addition to its grassed roof, it has many other "green" elements built into its design and construction, including the following. It has solar panels on the roof to provide hot water; the pitch and floodlights are deliberately set below the level of the surrounding terrain in order to reduce noise and (flood)light pollution for the neighbouring population; it has a small lake to collect rainwater for recycling purposes; and the main building has timber cladding for insulation purposes. I hope that helps to set your members' minds at rest."
This is brilliant news, and I think it sets a great example to other community projects, both small and large, of what can be done to really improve the "green-ness" of a project.
Another point I read on the site was that they are allowing the car parking to be used by the public on week days so that they can park and then use the Fastrack bus service to get into Dartford, Blue Water or Greenhithe etc, therefore saving on the use of private vehicles and meaning that the site is used all of the time.
All in all, I think that it is one of the best mainstream green projects that I have come across for a long time. I hope the team do well in their new grounds and that the fans really benefit from it.
All tickets have now sold out for the grand opening match on 11th Nov, which has to be a good sign :)
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I've just found that even the RICS (Royal Institute of Charted Surveyors) are acknowledging the stadium as being "green" and sustainable - that's quite a feat!
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