Sheffield Wednesday make start on Hillsborough improvements as Arise group waste no time
Work has started at Hillsborough following Arise Capital Partners’ takeover of Sheffield Wednesday.
Signage at the top of the South Stand is in the process of being removed as part of Sheffield Wednesday’s summer plan to oversee improvements to Hillsborough.
New Owls chairman David Storch, who completed Arise Capital Partners’ takeover of the club a fortnight ago, confirmed in his maiden speech ahead of the final day victory over West Bromwich Albion that a summer plan was in place for Hillsborough.
Arise want to implement changes and improvements at Hillsborough as part of their plan to develop the club’s infrastructure. As part of their plans, they want to provide hot water and Wi-Fi of a world-class quality - and that’s just for starters.
Last Sunday, Storch, who is now back in the United States, confirmed work at Hillsborough would commence on Monday.
As part of their plan to give Hillsborough a spruce up, work has already started to remove signage at the top of the South Stand that was put up back in 2015 by former Wednesday chairman Dejphon Chansiri.
As part of that addition to Hillsborough, Chansiri also put his own name up at the top of the North Stand either side of the clock. His name was covered up after he put the club into administration last October.
Images captured by The Star show that signage along the top of the South Stand has now started to be removed.
For example, ‘EST. 1867’ has been removed from beneath the South Stand clock and ‘Sheffield Wednesday’ has been removed from the right of the clock towards the Leppings Lane end.
At the opposite end of the stand, ‘Sheffield Wednesday’ has so far been shortened to ‘Sheffield Wed’, suggesting that is still in the process of being removed. ‘The Owls’ is also still on display in the corner that links the South Stand with the Kop.
Arise want to improve the matchday experience for Owls supporters and further changes are expected in S6 over the summer.
New chief executive David Bruce is understood to be overseeing the off-field improvements being made this summer.