Season › 2013-14 › News Council pledges support but cannot fund new Everton stadium Lyndon Lloyd , 30 April, 0comments | Jump to most recent Updated Liverpool City Council says that it will give its full backing to Everton's proposed new stadium development but stresses that any investment it makes would be in a wider regeneration scheme and it would not be in a position to fund the project on its own. The club's Chief Executive, Robert Elstone, announced at last night's Annual General Meeting that Everton and the council had made significant progress on plans for a new ground on a preferred location not far from Goodison Park, widely assumed to be Walton Hall Park, but that funding remains the biggest obstacle. He acknowledged that the project for a 50,000-seat stadium would require both public and private sector support, include sponsored naming rights and would likely involve the venue itself being owned by the council. Like Manchester City's model at the City of Manchester Stadium, now known as the Etihad Stadium, the club would be tenants, at least at the outset. Part of the funding model could also include building houses alongside the new stadium. Meanwhile, a fresh report published on the Liverpool Echo website but later removed, suggested that on top of funds already sourced and committed, Everton are facing a shortfall of around £30m in order to meet the costs of the proposed development. It is not known — and the report did not make clear — whether monies from naming rights for the stadium would go towards making up that shortfall or whether an approximate projection has been calculated with any funds already allocated. “As with all large-scale regeneration projects with the potential to create jobs and investment in Liverpool, the city council will look at ways it can support the wider regeneration scheme but no firm options have been developed in terms of how or where this will take shape," an LCC statement read. “This work is ongoing and we will announce the details of the location and support we will be offering once this has been further developed. “However, we must stress that the city council is clearly not in a position to fund the costs of a new stadium. “Any investment the council makes would be in a wider regeneration scheme, subject to a sound financial and economic rationale for doing so.” Liverpool council will be part-funding regeneration projects connected with Liverpool FC's proposed redevelopment of Anfield and envisage a similar role in support of any new development by Everton. About these ads © ToffeeWeb