Crystal Palace has received approval to redevelop Selhurst Park and can increase capacity to more than 34,000

CRYSTAL PALACE has been given the green light to increase Selhurst Park’s capacity to more than 34,000.

The Eagles bosses had a successful planning application to redesign the grandstand, which houses the dugouts, locker rooms and television camera portal.

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Croydon Council reviewed the four-year-old proposal and was unanimously approved by councillors.

It now goes to the Office of the Mayor of London, where it is expected to be officially stamped.

The capacity of the new three-tier grass-fronted grandstand in south London will increase from around 5,200 to an improved 13,500.

This will allow the club to have world-class hospitality and entertainment facilities for more than 2,500 fans at Selhurst Park.

Like Manchester City at the Etihad, there are plans for access to the ‘Tunnel Club’ where fans can watch players from behind a screen as they line up before the game and also conduct post-match interviews.

The pitch dimensions will also be increased during construction in order to make the ground “meet Uefa regulations and be suitable for hosting football tournaments”.

The club will seek to acquire six houses in Wooderson Close and relocate residents – while talks are underway with Sainsbury’s to purchase land needed for the development.

On April 1, 2018, a planning committee of the council voted unanimously to approve the application.

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But since then there have been minor adjustments to the overall plans and the Covid pandemic has slowed the process.

The 25,500-seat stadium opened in 1924 and Palace shared the site with Charlton and Wimbledon at various points between 1985 and 2003.

Managed by French world champion Patrick Vieira, Palace have played in the Premier League since 2013.

But it was only 12 years since they were in administration for the second time before a consortium led by chairman Steve Parish saved the club.

Parish said: “I would like to thank Croydon Council for their continued support for the stadium’s redevelopment which will bring significant investment to the borough and breathe new life into Selhurst Park.

“We would have liked to have started the project earlier, but our plans have been delayed by financial constraints due to the Covid pandemic.

“Over the last few years we have been focused on making our exciting Academy development a success. But now we turn to the stadium project.

“It has long been our goal to expand and modernize Selhurst Park to make it a home for the 21st century.

“We look forward to the start of the project. Much preparatory work remains to be done in the coming months and we will provide an expected timetable in due course.”