Works in Sankt Pauli were due in September, but demolition of the north end has now been postponed. Still, the new north stand will be ready in time for the 2015/16 season.

The complete redevelopment of Millerntor-Stadion has been ongoing since 2006. A few years ago FC Sankt Pauli even considered leaving the north end unchanged, but eventually decided to build a new grandstand.

Within 8 months and a tight budget of €8 million the current terrace will be replaced by a brand new structure. This way the stadium will be completely changed and exceed the capacity of 30,000 viewers.

Photo: Alonstoter (cc: by)

Initial plan was to start demolition in September, but promotion to the next level of DFB Pokal (German Cup) and having Borussia Dortmund drawn as rivals led to a second thought. The stadium will surely sell out and demolishing the north end would reduce capacity by 5,000, also cutting revenue. Additionally, the guest sector will have to be moved to the main grandstand, which combined with BVB’s large following might prove a logistic challenge.

Moving the demolition date to after October 28/29 seemed justified. However, there were arguments against the decision too. Demolition in late October means breaking ground in November or December, when temperatures may impede ground works. Also, the 8-month construction period would leave little time to deliver the stand ahead of or early into the 2015/16 campaign. On Friday the club decided to push works back anyway, seeing more pros than cons of the move.

Structurally, the new Nordtribune will be very much like the south one, already in operation: small standing terrace in the lower level and a larger seated tier above. Even the roof with two pillars obstructing view (but reducing budget) is alike. One major difference is the lack of corporate suites atop the stand, which were built in the south.