Fate of Cork Event Centre to be decided in an LA boardroom
An artist's impressions of the Cork Event Centre, and a bridge to French's Quay, as of October 2019. In a written reply to councillor Mick Finn, Cork City Council CEO Ann Doherty outlined the agreement in principle for the project. Picture: gnet.ie
The fate of the long-stalled Cork event centre project now rests on a boardroom decision in Los Angeles.
It was confirmed last night that after months of engagement between all the key parties, there is now an “agreement in principle on all the substantive issues” linked to the complex funding agreement designed to deliver the venue on South Main St.
The State is poised to plough €50m into the project to help deliver the 6,000-capacity venue, the sod for which was turned in early 2016 but which has been beset by redesigns, soaring costs, funding issues, planning appeals and a potential High Court challenge before the global pandemic hit.
More than five years on from the sod turning, a brick has yet to be laid on the earmarked site.
Despite fears that the global pandemic would spell the end of the project, Cork’s city councillors have been told there are still signs of hope.
It came after Independent councillor Mick Finn requested an update on the project at last night’s city council meeting.
In a written reply, council chief executive, Ann Doherty, said despite the pandemic, which decimated the global entertainment industry, all parties to the Cork event centre project — the city council, developers BAM, who won the tender for the public funding, and the proposed venue operators Live Nation — have continued to work together to progress the project.
She said the appropriate legal structures have been put in place by Live Nation and BAM to deliver the project and she said there has been “agreement in principle on all the substantive issues in the funding agreement”.
“All parties will enter into the agreement as the detailed design is completed and further certainty is achieved on the cost risks involved,” she said.
“This will also inform the construction programme. Live Nation and BAM are working to mobilise their design team so that it can be fully engaged once corporate approval is obtained by Live Nation in Ireland.”
That decision will be taken by Live Nation’s corporate headquarters in LA but it’s not known when that decision will be made but it's increasingly unlikely that construction will start next year.
Mr Finn described Ms Doherty’s update as positive and said there are welcome signs that all funding and legal elements of this project are in place, that detailed design is being completed and that all parties continue to work together on it:
"The latest cautionary note is that it still has to be rubber-stamped by the global division of operators Live Nation but I think it’s edging forward, albeit slowly. It’s really up to our Cabinet TDs to get this over the last line now and get Live Nation to announce as the entertainment industry rebounds from the Covid-19 impact.
“Imagine the public demand for such a centre once we emerge from the Covid shadows.”
He said he also wanted to recognise that the last 18 months or so has been “a period of flux” for the big players and providers, as well as the smaller players in the entertainment industry.
“So, credit must be given to Live Nation for keeping faith with this project which is so important for Cork and indeed Ireland, and which I know will be resoundingly successful once operational,” he said.
The cancellation of live events globally during the pandemic decimated Live Nation’s global business, with the firm losing out on some €5.7bn of revenue last year alone.
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