ONE of the key stakeholders at Stratfield Brake offered initial support for Oxford United’s stadium proposal, with the club expected to clarify some details in the coming days.

The U’s have asked landowner Oxfordshire County Council to lease the site, near Kidlington, for 250 years with a view to building a new ground and complementary facilities.

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Stratfield Brake is hired out to several community sports teams including Kidlington Cricket Club, who said they support United's proposal in principle following a committee meeting on Monday night.

The U's are expected to address issues raised by the plans ahead of next Tuesday's county council cabinet meeting, including the ownership of any new stadium.

Meanwhile, United have said they will aim to provide ‘new and improved’ facilities locally for teams who use the site, should their plans progress.

Kidlington chairman John Moss has spoken to United representatives and is of the understanding that facilities will ‘at a minimum be sustained but more than likely improved at a new location close to the existing site’.

He said: “When I took over as chairman in 2009, I was determined to take this club back to being a proper village cricket club.

“I believe this can be the final piece of the puzzle.

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“If we can get a dedicated facility then why wouldn’t we support that?

“I’ve been a member of this club for 37 years and this can take us back where we belong.

“The committee meeting was very positive on the content we’ve been given so far.”

Kidlington’s statement questioned the illustrative masterplan in council officers’ report for the proposal, which shows how the site could look.

The map, which is for indicative purposes only and subject to planning, has got supporters excited and features a small arena alongside the stadium.

One section of the report states a proposal ‘that the lease would be taken in the name of a corporate entity, owned 100 per cent by Oxford United directors shareholders, to be set up to develop the scheme’.

This has raised questions over who would own the stadium, with fans desperate to ensure a new ground is wedded to the club to avoid a potential repeat of their situation at the Kassam Stadium.

Former owner Firoz Kassam sold the club but not the stadium in 2006, with the U’s paying substantial rent to play there until their 25-year lease runs out in 2026.

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This is one of the issues United are expected to address in the coming days, before the county council’s cabinet discusses the proposal at its next meeting on Tuesday.

If it is approved, the club can enter negotiations with the council over the land at Stratfield Brake and only after that seek planning permission from Cherwell District Council.

The U’s want 18 hectares (44.48 acres) of the site, with initial plans for an 18,000-capacity stadium, training and community sports grounds and hotel, retail and conference facilities.