Chelsea's plan to build Europe's most expensive stadium, the planned £1 billion new Stamford Bridge, has come under threat after a local family who live next to the site of the proposed stadium have lodged a planning complaint with the local council in West London.
The Crostwaites, the family at the centre of the planning row, have lived in their West London cottage for fifty years. It is said that their house is so close to the Premier League ground that you could nearly kick a football from their front door onto the pitch. (That's assuming the gigantic stands weren't in the way of course.)
Their argument with the reconstruction of the stadium centres around their right to light - and the lack of it shining into their home when the new Stamford Bridge is built. The family took out an injunction back in May against the planning permission, which was granted a year ago and has already been signed off on by the Mayor of London, as they argue that the towering 60,000 seater stadium will cast a permanent shadow over parts of their home.
Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich is a man who usually gets what he wants but Chelsea's legal offer of legal advice worth £50,000 and a "compensation figure" believed to be somewhere in the region of a six figure sum has so far not been enough to persuade the family to wave their "right to light" in their home.
The Crostwaites own the large family home in a very expensive part of West London where a three bedroom property in the same row of houses recently sold for £1.18 million.
Premier League Champions Chelsea have made sure to outline that the planning and development of their new stadium has all been above board and a public consultation of local residence receive a whopping 97.5% support, not to mention the club have already paid compensation to the other homeowners in the area who will be affected by their "right to light".
Billionaire owner Abramovich has seen the argument already put the breaks on the investment and, thanks to the Crosthwaite family there is now a real worry that the stadium may not even ever be built.
Hammersmith and Fulham city councillors are set to meet on Monday to make a decision on what will happen next.
