The capacity of Warwickshire County Cricket Club’s proposed £32 million expansion of its Edgbaston ground to become a divisive political issue is becoming clearer almost by the day.
What began as a routine planning application, albeit a major one, has moved quickly to something of a cause celebre among the diverse communities of south Birmingham.
In theory, the ten residents associations and neighbourhood forums that have written to the city council demanding that it withdraw an offer of a £20 million loan to the cricket club represent thousands of people. In truth, probably only a tiny proportion of activists are truly concerned about Edgbaston’s expansion plans, or even understand what is actually being proposed.
But there is no doubt that a firestorm of community activism is being whipped up, magnified by tensions that exist in the electoral political battleground of Edgbaston, Moseley and Sparkbrook.
The Conservative-Liberal Democrat-led city council will know by now that it is treading on dangerous ground, since both parties have considerable General Election and local election expectations in the south of the city.
Short-term political expediency must not stand in the way of Test match cricket continuing to be played in Birmingham, and residents kicking up a stink about what will remain limited use of the ground in the summer months should be careful over what they wish for.
If the unthinkable were to happen and Warwickshire County Cricket Club folded, the subsequent redevelopment of Edgbaston would make the current planning application look like a walk in the park.
