GROUND BREAKING
Premier League club reach new milestone in £300m stadium expansion with special ‘bolt-on’ project set to boost capacity
Scroll down to see more pictures of the expansion
MANCHESTER CITY have reached a new milestone in its £300MILLION expansion of the Etihad Stadium.
The Premier League champions are working on a new North Stand to be integrated with the rest of the ground.
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The expansion project is expected to increase capacity to nearly 62,000 with 7,900 new seats.
Contractor John Sisk & Son started the steelwork in May and have now officially started attaching the bolt work.
This will see the new structure connect to the existing stadium.
Man City are hopeful of having the new stands open to fans by the middle of the 2025/26 season.
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It is claimed that the scheme will "promise to enhance the fan experience".
This will be done with the inclusion of the 3,000-capacity fan zone.
The plans also include the construction of a 400-bed hotel as well as a new club shop and a museum.
The work is also thought to have promised a "significant economic boost through job creation and development in the community".
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To mark the occasion the Citizens invited the Cartwright family to hear about the project.
The family has four generations who have supported the club since the 1960s.
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The family includes a former City hero in Gary Owen who played for the club between 1975 and 1979.
Director of Infrastructure Development Ed Dalton said: "It’s an exciting moment in our building programme for the new steel structure to be attached and bolted to the existing North Stand.
"Fans and visitors can see the extended upper tier progressing which really gives a sense of the scale of the expansion and how the inclusion of 3,000 new rail seats will add to the electric atmosphere on matchdays.
“Hosting a special day for the Cartwright family, who have been here for many of the major moments at the Etihad Stadium and are excited to watch many more in the future, was a fitting way to acknowledge the symbolic joining of the old and the new.
"Work is progressing at pace on the development, and we’re looking forward to marking more milestones in the coming months before we welcome fans into the expanded North Stand during the 2025-26 season."
The stand will also include a new sky bar, which will overlook the pitch.
There will also be a pitch and stadium roof walk experience for fans.
Man City have been at the Etihad Stadium since ditching Maine Road in the 2003/04 season.
The original capacity of the ground was 38,000 but previous work has risen the number to 53,400.
And the new investment isn't just welcomed, but perhaps necessary.
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Supporters in the ground for City's 2-2 draw with Arsenal last weekend were soaked after a leak in the roof at the Etihad poured down onto the crowd.
Meanwhile Premier League rivals Arsenal are exploring ways to increase the Emirates capacity to 80,000.
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