 The club signed a Section 106 and lease agreement in July 2012 , activating the planning permission which had been granted subject to the 42 conditions recommended by the Head of Planning back in October 2011 . Many of these conditions would be routinely applied to applications , such as the ground must be completed within three years ( July 2015 ) and the building matching the submitted drawings . Other conditions include the recommendation that F.C. United not play any home games when Manchester City are also at home , or there being a major event at the City of Manchester Stadium due to the grounds being just over 3 miles apart and the possible impact on traffic and car parking availability within the area . Floodlights on one of the community pitches must be switched off at 8pm , with the other pitches being allowed to operate until 9pm . The club 's original target was to open the Ten Acres Lane site in August 2012 . However , several delays ensued including the change of site to Moston and a 13 @-@ week " cooling off period " after the successful application . The F.C. United board had initially identified a tentative construction start date of May 2012 , but the legal challenge to the council 's decision delayed this for nearly 18 months until work finally began in November 2013 . 
