AN ambitious football club will present their plans for a £1million stadium redevelopment to a crunch meeting of councillors this summer.

Bosses at Colne FC hope to persuade Pendle Borough Council to transfer the freehold of their ground at Holt House to them at no cost.

Currently the club has a 99-year lease but chairman Ryan Haigh said supporters who were prepared to invest hundreds of thousands of pounds in the scheme wanted the security of full ownership.

The scheme would see the current 1,300 spectator stadium off Birtwistle Avenue demolished and new ground with four new stands holding 5,000 built in its place.

It would have an artificial pitch, bar area, function rooms and changing rooms.

A second grass pitch for the club's large junior section would be added along with 160 extra car parking spaces.

Several paid jobs would be created by the club currently staffed entirely by volunteers.

A meeting earlier this year between the Evo-stik League club and council over its request for a community asset transfer of the land ended deadlocked after officials recommended they offer a 125-year lease instead.

Mr Haigh said: “We are looking forward to showing our latest plans to councillors to persuade them not just what this scheme will do for the club but for Colne as whole.“We are talking about a total investment of around £1million.

“If the asset transfer is agreed we can start the planning process and begin building work in 12 to 18 months with completion in stages over five years.

“The people ready to invest in the project want the security of freehold ownership rather than a long lease.

“The club is happy to protect any transfer with legal covenants regarding sporting use, its sale for profit and ensuring it reverts to the council if the club goes bust.”

The meeting will take place after May 3’s local elections for Pendle Council, currently run by a Labour/Liberal Democrat coalition while the Conservatives are the largest party.

Conservative group leader Paul White, who recently took sports minister Tracy Crouch to the ground, said: “We’re fully behind Colne FC’s plans.

“We support the transfer of community assets to community groups and giving Colne FC the freehold of their ground.”

Council Labour leader Mohammed Iqbal said: “I have an open mind. A 25-year-lease in my opinion is as good as transferring the freehold."

“It we were to agree a community asset transfer, there are planning and legal matters to be sorted out first.”

LibDem group leader and deputy leader of the council Tony Greaves said: “Just handing the land over without considering all relevant matters as the Conservatives want would be quite wrong, and might not be legally possible.”