Lewisham Council’s top brass have postponed tonight’s decision on whether to approve a compulsory purchase order (CPO) of land owned by Millwall Football Club.
If approved, the forced purchase of Millwall’s land would include its car park, cafe, and the Lions Centre, which includes its astro turf pitch.
The decisive meeting at Lewisham Town Hall will instead take place on January 11.
It was announced at the beginning of Thursday’s meeting that Lewisham Council wished to “investigate” new information that has come to light.
The News understands that the new information in question, which prompted Lewisham’s decision to adjourn the meeting, was produced today by the English Football League (EFL).
Millwall has said that if the council buys its land, it would lose 24-hour access to its Lions Centre football pitch, which would therefore threaten the club’s Youth Academy Category 2 status.
That threat has today been confirmed in a letter from the EFL, which was also seen by cabinet members of Lewisham Council, who were due to approve or block the CPO tonight.