"STEAUA" SOCCER CLUB HAS NOWHERE TO PLAY The stadium in Voluntari, a project without money

• According to the officials of Voluntari, the team that would use the stadium of the town would be required to bear the name of the town

• Mayor Florentin Pandele claims that due to the crisis, the project of the sports complex, worth EUR 80 million, is no longer a priority, even though its feasibility study has been approved

A big entertainment and sports complex is planned to be built at the location of the former garbage dump of the town of Voluntari, which will require an estimated investment of approximately EUR 80 million. The project raised a lot of interest when Voluntari still counted as one of the booming towns in Romania, thanks to the real estate boom, but after the crisis came, it was left without funding, just like many other projects all over the country.

Florentin Pandele, the mayor of Voluntari, said for BURSA that the future complex would span 11.5 hectares, with a built surface of 35,918 sqm and a gross building area of 63,471 sqm. The "Nadia Comăneci" Culture and Sports Center will be located in the neighborhood of the future highway connecting Pipera and Ştefăneşti.

The investment entails the construction of a partial roof stadium, with a capacity of 30,000 seats, as well as the construction of a multi-purpose sports court with a capacity of 8,000 seats and a surface of 1,800 square meters. The latter will be used for indoor sports, as well as for cultural, artistic and entertainment activities. The complex will also feature a 4-star hotel for the guests, with 28 rooms and another 4-star hotel for athletes, as well as restaurants and conference rooms. "A complete novelty compared to the other sports complexes which already exist in Romania is the < Pitch View > restaurant", says Florentin Pandele. The complex will also include a special center for journalists, with 80 seats for sportscasters.

The feasibility for the project has already been completed, but according to the mayor of Voluntari, the project is no longer a priority, due to the financial crisis: "We won"t abandon it completely, but we are waiting for an economic turnaround first".

Dan Răşică, the chief of police of Voluntari, considers that this project is unique in Romania and that it is sorely needed, given the shortage of infrastructure adequate for professional athletic events and cultural events. He said that the project currently lacks funding and that the local authorities plan to set up a public-private partnership for this purpose, with the local authorities to supply the plot of land and the regional infrastructure, the access roads and the parking spots.

The mayoralty had initially planned to begin work on the project as early back as 2008, and until now it has negotiated with several investors, but without reaching an agreement. Dan Răşică says that steps were taken to obtain European funds and that the mayoralty intends to have the stadium be used by a soccer team, subject to the team in question adding the name of the town to its name: "Since the money belongs to the inhabitants of this town, meaning that any team that would wish to use this complex will bear the name of the town: < Steaua Voluntari >, < Rapid Voluntari >, < Dinamo Voluntari > etc."

The representative of the Mayoralty says that once it were launched, the project should take about two years to complete.