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York Community Stadium
(York City)
Address: Kathryn Avenue,
Monks Cross Drive,
Huntington,
York,
North Yorkshire,
England,
YO32 9AF
Capacity: 8,500 (All-Seater)
Bootham Crescent carries a great past. The hope will be that the York Community Stadium can carry a great future.
Known for sponsorship reasons as the LNER Community Stadium, the York Community Stadium is the new home of York City Football Club, replacing their Bootham Crescent home which the Minstermen had been based at for nearly 90 years.
The need for a new stadium came about back in 1999 when York City ceased ownership of Bootham Crescent. A £2 million loan from the Football Stadia Improvement Fund was secured with instructions to identify the site for a new stadium by 2007 and have planning permission created by 2009. The new site eventually chosen by York City was at Monks Cross in Huntington, on the site of the old Huntington Stadium.
Had things originally gone to plan, the new stadium would have been ready for use part-way through the 2014-15 season. That didn’t happen though, with a number of delays affecting the construction process, including in June 2013 when protected great crested newts were discovered at the Monks Cross site. Issues with finalising contracts and rising costs saw further delays to the construction process, and work on the site would finally begin in early December 2017.
It would end up taking three years for the York Community Stadium to be completed, with York City’s first match finally coming on the 16th February 2021, a 3-1 defeat to AFC Fylde in the National League North.
Alongside York City, the York Community Stadium is also home to rugby league club the York City Knights. They were based at the old Huntington Stadium between their founding in 2002 and the stadium’s closure in 2014, and then spent a few years groundsharing Bootham Crescent with York City before moving into the York Community Stadium in March 2021.
Location and Getting There
The York Community Stadium itself forms part of the York Stadium Leisure Complex.
It is located in Huntington, around two miles northeast of York City Centre. The stadium has two shopping parks within close vicinity of it, the Vangarde Shopping Park is immediately to the east and the Monks Cross Shopping Park is slightly further away to the northeast.
The stadium’s location on the outskirts of York makes it suitable for people travelling to games by car.
There are more than 400 parking spaces available on a matchday around the complex, though these do require a £5 booking fee which has to be paid in advance of using them.
To find free parking that’s relatively close by, the recommendation would be heading west of the stadium into more central Huntington and searching for a spot there.
Whilst the stadium’s outskirts location makes it suitable for cars, it is nowhere near as suitable for people travelling via train.
York Station, served by northern rail, Transpennine Express, CrossCountry, LNER and Grand Central, is in much more central York. It is around three miles between the station and the stadium and walking from here would take around an hour if that is really want to do.
The much quicker alternative to walking however is making use of buses.
Immediately south of the Community Stadium is the Monks Cross Park and Ride Stop. It is served by the Number 9 Park and Ride service which goes through central York and loops around both the Community Stadium Leisure Complex as well as the two nearby Shopping Parks. One of the stops included on the route is right outside York Station, and the whole loop circuit takes around 40 minutes in total.
On matchdays, you can also make use of the Y22 shuttle bus service from Stonebow in the centre of York. The service runs two hours before kick-off at frequent intervals until kick-off. The return service begins departing from Monks Cross Park and Ride 10 minutes before the end of the game and runs up till 90 minutes after the final whistle. An adult return can be purchased for £3.50.
Outside the Stadium
With the York Community Stadium being part of a Leisure Complex, there are plenty of facilities littered around the stadium’s exterior.
That is certainly true when it comes to the South Stand, which is situated behind a large, modern-looking building made from large glass windows at the base and grey, white and blue panels higher up. This large building is considered part of Vangarde Leisure and includes a Cineworld cinema, a Hollywood Bowl bowling alley, a Puttstars indoor mini-golf, as well as a Starbucks, TGI Fridays and Zizzi restaurant. You will need to head around to the sides of this Vangarde Leisure building to reach other parts of the York Community Stadium, as well as the South Stand Turnstiles.
The turnstiles for the South Stand (Turnstiles 1-6) can be found over by the stadium’s southeast corner, next to the Cineworld Entrance.
The York Community Stadium’s southern car park is immediately beyond the South Stand and Vangarde Leisure building, and further south of there is the Monks Cross Park and Ride.
Heading round in a clockwise direction brings you past the Vangarde Leisure building and up to the stadium’s West Stand.
Its exterior is dark blue at the base with white translucent panels higher up. The centre of the stand is made from blue panels and protrudes outwards. You can find a large mural here which depicts York landmarks including an Azuma train, York Minster, York City players, York City Knights players, the York City walls, Clifford’s Tower, a stand from the York Community Stadium and a flag with the White Rose of York on it.
Turnstiles 15-18 are housed in the centre of this mural. Head left of this mural and over towards the stadium’s northwest corner and you will find Turnstiles 13-14.
Either end of the mural structure has a toilet in place. The Men’s toilet is the more north of the two and the Women’s toilet is the more south of the two.
Following the access road around the stadium will bring you past a group of bike racks and over to the stadium’s North Stand.
Similar to the West Stand, its exterior consists of a dark blue base with white translucent panels higher up. A sign atop the stand displays the LNER Community Stadium name. There are two blue turnstile blocks on this side of the York Community Stadium.
The block nearer to the northwest corner contains Turnstile 12 and the block nearer to the northeast corner contains Turnstiles 13-14, as well as a small Ticket Office.
The York Community Stadium’s northern car park is immediately beyond the North Stand, as well as a slanted roof building which houses the York MotorSports Village, an indoor kart racing circuit.
Heading clockwise from the North Stand brings you to buildings that are part of the York Stadium Leisure Complex. Facilities in this complex include a six-lane swimming pool, sports hall, gym, adventure sports zone and 3G five-a-side football pitches. There is also a community hub in the complex which includes an NHS Blood Trust Donation Centre and a non-profit organisation called York Against Cancer.
Continue all the way around the leisure complex buildings and you will come to the East Stand, which is the Main Stand at the York Community Stadium.
Its exterior consists of a random sequence of glass windows, as well as blue, light grey, and dark grey tinted glass panels. A sign at the top of the stand displays the LNER Community Stadium name, as well as the badge of both York City and the York City Knights.
A lot of the Main Stand’s exterior is used for facilities in the York Stadium Leisure Complex; the turnstiles inside are located elsewhere.
Immediately out beyond the Main Stand is the York Community Stadium’s eastern car park, as well as the three 3G five-a-side football pitches.
Inside the Stadium
The South Stand consists of a single tier of seating. The seats form a speckled design which is red at the bottom, blue at the top, and contains yellow and white seats in between. The stand additionally has a flat platform at the front for disabled supporters to use. It is located over towards the stadium’s southeast corner.
Your view from anywhere inside the South Stand is perfectly clear as there are no supporting pillars coming down from the roof above.
The stand does not have windshields in place at either end, however.
The West Stand is also single-tiered and a similar height to the adjacent South Stand. The seats inside form a speckled design which is red at the bottom, blue at the top, and contains yellow and white seats in between. Most of the space up at the back of the stand is taken up by translucent panels, but also includes a row of pairs of blue seats. The stadium’s matchday camera is also in place up at the back of this stand.
Your view from anywhere inside the West Stand is perfectly clear as there are no supporting pillars coming down from the roof above.
The stand does not have windshields in place at either end, however.
The North Stand is the smallest of the four at the York Community Stadium. Its single tier of seating forms a speckled design with most of the seats coloured reds, and the rest coloured either yellow or white. The stand additionally has a flat platform at the front for disabled supporters to use. It is located over towards the stadium’s northeast corner.
Your view from anywhere inside the North Stand is perfectly clear as there are no supporting pillars coming down from the roof above.
The stand does not have windshields in place at either end, however.
The Main Stand is the largest of the four at the York Community Stadium. Its single tier of seating forms a speckled design which is red at the bottom, blue at the top, and contains yellow and white seats in between. Up behind the back row of the seating area is a row of executive boxes. The central block of the stand contains blue seating with darker coloured seats up in the very back rows. You can find the stadium dugouts built into the base of this seating block, with the tunnel in between them and the changing rooms located inside.
Your view from anywhere inside the Main Stand is perfectly clear as there are no supporting pillars coming down from the roof above.
The stand does not have windshields in place at either end, however.
Away Fans
Away fans at the York Community Stadium are normally based in the North Stand. It is the smallest of the stadium’s four stands, but is all-seater and offers perfectly clear views of the pitch from anywhere inside. Smaller away crowds tend to congregate in the stand’s more central seating blocks and position themselves right behind the northern goal.
Access into the North Stand comes from the turnstile blocks outside, The block containing Turnstiles 13-14 also houses a small Ticket Office which away supporters can use on a matchday.
Matchday Pubs
Pubs available to supporters on a matchday include*:
-Pear Tree Farm (Monks Cross Drive, YO32 9GZ) (Typically Home and Away Supporters) (Located northwest of Monks Cross Shopping Park)
-The HogsHead (Huntington Road, YO32 9PX) (Typically Home and Away Supporters) (Located in Huntington)
-The Maltings (Tanner's Moat, YO1 6HU) (Typically Home and Away Supporters) (Located near the River Ouse)
-The Nags Head (100 Micklegate, YO1 6JX) (Typically Home and Away Supporters) (Located near York Station)
-The Three Cranes Inn (11 St. Sampson's Square, YO1 8RN) (Typically Home and Away Supporters) (Located in central York)
-Valhalla (4 Patrick Pool, YO1 8BB) (Typically Home and Away Supporters) (Located in central York)
*The stadium's location on the outskirts of York impacts the amount of pubs available around its facility. The shopping parks nearby would be your best close to go if you are not grabbing a drink in more central York.
Overview
After decades at their Bootham Crescent home, York City Football Club and the York City Knights have made the move northeast to a very modern venue.
Part of a complex loaded with sports facilities and shopping parks, as well as plenty of parking spaces for both matchdays and non-matchdays, the York Community Stadium is a simple but practical football ground that provides clear views for every visitor based inside.
There are strong memories attached to the former home of the Minstermen. Whilst it could be a long time till fans of York City become fully accustomed to life at their new home, the Community Stadium is part of the next chapter in this century-old football club’s history. The hope will be that new timeless memories are just around the corner in Huntington.
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