River re-routed to make way for football stadium.
The River Lea has been rerouted to make space for the new Luton Town football stadium, which is scheduled to open in 2028.
It was formerly culverted underground and flowed through what will become Power Court’s football pitch.
More than 300m (984ft) of concrete tunnel has been erected to reroute it, and the club intends to build a riverside leisure area for fans and residents.
Michael Moran, chief operating officer at 2020 Developments, stated, “Many years of preparation and collaboration with the Environment Agency have led to this point.
“We’ve done a tonne of ground investigations, all these engineering works, and now the water is flowing down this new route.”
Luton Town Football ClubThe River Lea originates in the Leagrave neighbourhood of Luton and flows through Hertfordshire before joining the Thames in London.
In 2023, Luton Borough Council will open up a section of the river in the town centre as part of the Hat Gardens Park. The river enters Power Court shortly after passing through the Hat Gardens.
On Thursday, the previous route was closed and sandbags were removed to allow the water to flow into its new course. “We’ve effectively stopped the old river, and water is now flowing through the new channel around the edge of the site,” Mr. Moran said.
“The site has got a huge industrial past, so the work to date has been the hard yards in the ground, but it’s nice to see a nicer touch to it with the new river route opened up.”
Luton Town Football ClubMr Moran stated that the river, together with a massive UK Power Network substation, were “key impediments” to the building proposal.
“By diverting the river, we can then dismantle the substation’s shell, which will happen next week. “Cables have gone and it’s all ready to go, then we’ve got a flat site to start piling later this year.”
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