Toffees Stick at Hill Dick Groundtastic checks out Everton’ s new Hill Dickinson Stadium
Hill Dickinson Stadium Photos: Paul Claydon
Having bade an emotional farewell to Goodison Park at the end of last season, Everton made the move to the Hill Dickinson Stadium during the summer. The new stadium may only be two miles from the old ground, but it is the polar opposite in almost every other regard. The 52,769-seat stadium has been built on the former Bramley-Moore Dock on the banks of the River Mersey and is a pleasing mix of modern design and historic features. Its location dictates that the majority of fans attending will walk up from Liverpool city centre, passing landmarks such as the Liver Building and tourist attractions like The Beatles museum and the Albert Dock, giving it the feel of a‘ destination’ venue. The Hill Dick will surely go straight onto the‘ must visit’ lists of those who seek out iconic football weekends.
Above: Fans passing under the Grade II listed Bascule Bridge on the walk to the new stadium from the city centre
It was way back in the mid-1990s that talk of Everton building a new stadium first began. Ironically the original site identified was at King’ s Dock, not far from where they eventually relocated. After this plan fell through, another site in Kirkby was looked at but this also ended up on the scrap heap. The next plan was probably the most controversial, a shared new stadium in Stanley Park with rivals Liverpool. This one never got any real traction and was followed by another scheme at Walton Hall Park. Finally, in 2017, the club announced its preferred site for a new stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock.
After achieving planning consent, work at Bramley-Moore Dock began in July 2021. One of the first tasks was to drain the water from the old dock and fill it with sand dredged from the Irish Sea. Once this was complete, work on the construction phase commenced
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