Planet Swans ArchivesContractors working on Swansea’s new £24m sports stadium say it will start rising from the ruins of the old Morfa athletics arena within weeks.
They say they have returned from the Christmas break with work on schedule.
Provisionally named White Rock, it will be home to Swansea City Football Club and the Ospreys regional rugby team.
The last of 1,000 concrete piles are being driven into the ground before the steel frame, which forms the basis of the new arena, is erected in February.
Project manager Berwyn Price said people would then start to see the scale of the project.
The old athletics stadium has been demolished, but with large blue metal sheets erected around the construction site little can be seen from the outside.
Mr Price said all preliminary works had been completed, with the new access off the southbound carriageway of Neath Road being used for construction traffic.
A footbridge providing new pedestrian and cycle access across the River Tawe to the site has been eased into place
Mr Price said: “”Everything’s on target for White Rock to be completed in time for the start of the 2005-2006 football and rugby season.”
The stadium will not just be used for football and rugby, however. It will also have a capacity of 30,000 for concerts and other events.
The designer, TTH Architects, is the company that designed and supervised construction of Sunderland Football Club’s acclaimed Stadium of Light.
White Rock will include a number of innovations including a translucent roof structure to maximise the sun and light penetrating the stadium.
The aim is to avoid the pitch problems that have dogged other venues, including Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium, where grass has struggled to grow.
“The pitch, which is designed to host up to 62 games each season, will be seeded and grown on site,” said Mr Price.
The nearby commercial and retail development on the former Morfa athletics stadium site is also making progress.
Work on B&Q’s new store and a Morrisons supermarket site has also started.
