Roland Garros given green light for stadium renovation
Tuesday 4 October 2016 16:37, UK
The French Tennis Federation has been given the go-ahead to construct a new stadium at Roland Garros.
Plans to extend the site in Paris had been put on hold after environmental groups had opposed the building of a new 5,000-seater court.
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They claimed it would harm vegetation at the nearby Serres d'Auteuil botanical garden in the west of the city.
The botanical garden's 19th century greenhouses, situated a few hundred yards from the centre court, hosts a large variety of tropical and local flowers.
However, France's highest administrative jurisdiction, the Conseil d'Etat, gave its go-ahead to the project by overturning a court decision that had put the whole project on hold.
As part of the refurbishment work, the federation is planning to build a roof over Philippe Chatrier Court by 2020.
Roland Garros is the smallest of the four Grand Slam venues and the changes would increase the 21-acre venue to 34 acres.
The renovation is expected to cost around 350m euros and the ruling means work can now continue on the site until a further administrative court decision is made in the coming weeks.
