Liverpool Council bosses have bought Everton FC’s training ground in a £13m deal which will ease the financial pressures facing the Blues.
The council has bought Finch Farm from the firm that developed it as a training complex for the club, Finch Farm Ltd.
The company filed for winding up weeks before the deal went through.
Mayor Anderson said the council had used its “borrowing power” – which offers it favourable interest rates – to buy the Halewood site.
But reaction from fans was mixed, with some calling the deal “morally wrong”.
However, the council insisted it was a “win-win” situation for city taxpayers.
Under the terms of the deal and long-term lease taken by Everton, the council could stand to make a profit in the longer term.
Mayor Anderson said: “It’s a good deal for us and for them.
“We will get revenue from it, and it frees up money for the club.
“When I was approached to see if we could assist, we were happy to, and after a few months of negotiation it was done.
“This nails the lie that we do nothing for Everton.”
Mayor Anderson said the income to the council would be invested into services, and that the deal was “risk-free”.
Everton chief executive Robert Elstone said: “We continue to work with the council on many fronts and the club is especially pleased to have delivered an innovative scheme, on our superb Finch Farm facility, that works for both parties.”
The source added: “We’ve been in increasing dialogue with the council over a number of things over the last 12 months, working to improve relations.
“The company had been looking to sell because of its financial situation and we were keen to improve the rents we were paying.”
The club moved to Finch Farm after leaving Bellefield in West Derby, in the midst of a protracted battle to gain planning permission for a housing development on the site.
The sale of that land to Bellway homes was reported to have made the Blues £8m.
But in 2010, the year the Bellefield deal went through, the club’s debt increased by £7m, leaving it £44.9m in the red.
Is this an admission that EFC have Financial troubles? The rent was £1.5m per year and although any saving is a good move; does saving say £1m per year in reality represent an easing of said financial woes – because if it does it reflects just how much the club is in severe financial difficulty!
Have Trust Everton been consulted on this too during the last 12 months or have the Club once again ignored the efforts of the fans?
Lastly, in 2010 we sold Bellefield for £8m and increased the debt by £7m – does that not in reality total a £15m loss with £8m of it being masked by the Bellefield sale?
Something has to be done, we as fans need to stick together for the sake of OUR football club! NSNO; Nothing but the BEST is good enough – please remember that!!
Talk about painting a bad picture…..
This a great deal for both the club and LCC so why is this website protraying it as a bad thing?
And what this got to do with the clubs debts?
Weird?
Article was copied from the Echo mate.