Yes we Barbi-can

A new 1500-seat music venue could soon re-open close to the university, regularly bringing top music stars to York for the first time. The Barbican Centre, close to Heslington Road is on the brink of re-opening as a venue for concerts and national snooker competitions.

The City of York Council, who closed the Barbican in 2004, currently owns the site. The council refused to reveal the prospective bidders as this is “still going through the procurement process.” However, Vision can reveal that top leisure venue management company SMG entertainments is interested in the site.

A spokesman for SMG entertainments, who also run the MEN Arena in Manchester and the Metro Radio Arena in Newcastle as well as venues across Europe, confirmed their interest in the Barbican but said: “We’re not in a position to comment at the moment as negotiations are still underway”.

It is understood the SMG entertainments plans would see sixty full-time equivalent jobs created, including the potential for part-time student jobs. The apparently good condition of the site would mean that any new development would be open by next summer.

The Barbican used to be the host of the UK Snooker championships, which SMG entertainments hope to bring back to York if their bid is successful. The venue was closed by the council in 2004 after heavy annual losses were requiring taxpayer subsidies of around half a million pounds each year. Plans by leisure company Absolute Leisure to develop it later fell through.

Pete Dwyer, director of Adults, Children and Education at City of York Council told Vision: “We have received final business cases from the two developers who have been kept in the dialogue with the authority on plans for the former Barbican Auditorium. We will soon be moving to formal tenders before making a recommendation for the Executive in September. A further update will also be provided to the Executive on 22 July.”