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Tottenham have confirmed their new stadium plans have been approved by London Mayor Boris Johnson. Work has already begun on the 61,000-seater stadium a stone's throw from White Hart Lane, after Spurs were granted permission by Haringey Council for the £400 million Northumberland Park project in mid-December. Earlier this month, the club told the Tottenham Hotspur Supporters' Trust (THST) they would submit the plans to the mayor for approval within a month, while the club plan to move into their new home for the start of the 2018-19 season. Chairman Daniel Levy thanked the mayor for his cooperation but admitted there were still stages of the planning process left to complete. "This marks yet another major milestone for this vital and complex scheme and we are grateful to the mayor for his ongoing support. We remain focused on completing the final stages of the planning process," Levy told Spurs' official website. "This new scheme carries enormous public benefits and will play a key role in kick-starting place change, bringing exceptional opportunities for the local community and wider stakeholders. We are proud to be part of this important step forward for an area that has been our home for more than 130 years and where we shall continue to live and play our part." Johnson said: "White Hart Lane is already an iconic stadium, steeped in history, and the new venue will not only almost double its capacity, but provide world-class facilities to watch Premier League football, international sports events and concerts in the heart of the capital. "The stadium will also be the focal point of a major drive to regenerate Tottenham, breathing new life into the area, creating jobs and boosting growth." The THST said it was "delighted" by the news but warned of tough times and plenty more work ahead. "The next two seasons will undoubtedly be difficult for fans, saying an emotional goodbye to the much loved White Hart Lane next year, then facing a season away from N17 before returning to our new home and the largest, most ambitious club stadium in the capital for the start of the 2018-19 season," read a THST statement. "We will continue to work closely with the Club to ensure that the interests of supporters are kept at the forefront of all plans, that the games played away from our traditional home remain in London and that the new stadium is as accessible, as atmospheric and, in time, as iconic as the current White Hart Lane." Spurs could face opposition to the approved proposals from government service Historic England, which argues the plans will negatively impact on Warmington House, a grade II listed building, and the surrounding conservation area. "If Haringey Council or the Mayor of London were minded to approve the applications, we will give careful consideration to whether the Secretary of State should be advised to call in the proposals for his own determination given the severity of the impact and the current lack of any policy support for the harm done," Historic England wrote in a letter dated July 3, 2015, and released in the minutes of a Haringey Council planning meeting last year.
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