Capital's dream of 6,000-seat concert arena takes shape

Published on Tuesday 28 April 2009 22:59

THE capital is to have an indoor concert arena, after a major review in the city found it was in desperate need of a medium-sized venue, The Scotsman can reveal.

Edinburgh city council leaders envision a venue with a capacity of up to 6,000, with the waterfront strong favourite as the site for the building, which the Scottish Government and Scottish Enterprise will be asked to help pay for.

The 30 million arena would help Edinburgh to compete for major touring acts with venues such as the SECC in Glasgow. It is hoped the iconic hall will become Scotland's answer to the Sage in Gateshead and the Millennium Centre in Cardiff.

The project is the main winner out of the biggest study of cultural venues in the capital, which also recommends pursuing the creation of a new home for the Edinburgh International Film Festival and a year-round comedy venue. Other projects, such as reviving the former Leith Theatre, replacing the crumbling Ross Bandstand and build a concert hall for classical music are expected to be shelved for the foreseeable future.

The long-awaited report recommends the creation of a "hybrid" venue which would mainly be used for rock and pop concerts that Edinburgh struggles to attract. It will probably be the first beneficiary of a proposed "cultural fund" which would ring-fence finance for major infrastructure projects.

The authors of the report, PMP Consultants, questioned concert promoters and venue managers and found a gap between venues such as the Usher Hall, the Corn Exchange and Edinburgh Playhouse, and big outdoor venues such as Edinburgh Castle Esplanade and Murrayfield Stadium.

The venue would be able to adapt its capacity to as few as 1,000 to make it suitable for other art forms, such as theatre and dance, and major conferences.

Deidre Brock, the city's culture leader, said yesterday: "This groundbreaking study gives us an unprecedented view of how we and our partners can shape the future of cultural venue provision in the capital.

"As one might expect in Edinburgh, home to the world's greatest arts festival, there is enormous cultural demand. We and our partners must now ensure that we continue to cater to this demand and, crucially, stay ahead of the competition."

The 120,000 study, commissioned by the city council and Scottish Enterprise, reveals that more than 200 million is needed to improve venues in the capital and pay for new ones.

More than 100 individuals and dozens of organisations were interviewed over 18 months. The study looked at more than 70 performing arts venues across the city with a capacity of more than 200. Projects were "scored" to gauge those which should be prioritised and were most likely to be delivered.

In terms of existing venues, the study has backed giving priority to a 10 million refurbishment of the Queen's Hall concert venue, ahead of revamps of the King's Theatre, which would cost up to 20 million, and the Assembly Rooms, at an estimated cost of 12 million.

In a separate report, corporate services director Jim Inch, who has ordered a feasibility study on the new concert venue, said: "It is clear that a financial strategy will need to be developed by the council, in concert with a range of partners and stakeholders, to take account of the very large sums the study recommends should be invested in the city's cultural infrastructure."