Apologies for the lack of posts but the day job has been calling.
Over the past few days a couple of executive decisions taken by Mayor Lutfur Rahman have caught the eye. I’ll deal with his version of Educational Maintenance Allowance in another post but for the moment, let’s look at his news for Victoria Park.
On October 20, he signed off a deal with events organiser Live Nation to run gigs in Victoria Park during the Olympics next year. The decision document (it’s well worth a read) reveals much longer than anticipated negotiations with Live Nation over the past year and that there remains a significant degree of uncertainty about what will happen.
However, what we do know is this:
- Live Nation, with the blessing of the council, will cordon off with giant hoardings a large section of the park for six weeks next summer
- In the week prior to the Opening Ceremony on July 27, Live Nation are looking at staging three “commercial gigs” (ie you buy tickets) each with a 30,000 capacity. The report raises some doubt over whether these will actually take place, however.
- On each day from from July 27 until the closing ceremony on August 12, there will be “free to access” gigs/screens/events that will be licensed from noon until 12.30am. These events will be ticketed but they will be free. There will be a capacity of 30,000 people at any one time. The council has negotiated a daily allocation of 4,000 tickets for Tower Hamlets residents who will have to pay a £3.50 booking fee for a maximum of four each.
- Live Nation estimate 1.2million visitors to their Victoria Park events during the Games.
- The gigs and events will be aimed at “young people, families and sport” (note that older people who have paid taxes all their lives don’t seem to be welcome, they’ll just have to endure the noise – welcome to One Tower Hamlets). There will be an allocation of tickets for athletes.
- Tower Hamlets council, the GLA and Live Nation will each contribute £100,000 for “the programme content”.
The council admits the impact of the park will be “significant” but it boasts that it has secured a good deal for residents. Well, what is that deal? It had hoped to charge a venue hire fee of £600,000, according to the document, but that seems to have been over-optimistic. It appears that Live Nation has negotiated that down to £442,285, which is about £10,000 a day for the six week period that an area of the park will be closed off. The fee is equivalent to 36pence for each of the 1.2million people expected to attend.
The small print is also worrying. The council has secured an £80,000 refundable deposit from Live Nation as a bond to clear the mess and damage to the park, but in return the council has agreed to agreed to indemnify Live Nation up to £20million if certain clauses are breached.
This is a staggering sum, so what is the main clause they’re worried about? Answer, the unauthorised issuing of press releases by the council. The argument is that if the council goes ahead with its own publicity that could damage the worldwide reputation of Live Nation’s artistes. Clearly, Live Nation has been reading about Takki Sulaiman, the council’s hapless “communications chief”, on this blog.
Although I’ve complained here before about the council using the park as a cash cow, I think the Olympics has to be the exception. Vicky Park, which is only a 15 minute walk from the main stadium at most (depending on routes will be open) will be the centre for Games entertainment. I just hope that they provide something that caters for everyone not just the Lovebox crowd.
What do you think?
Classic!
Are you starting a sweepstake for how long it will take before the irrepressible Mr Sulaiman costs the borough millions of pounds? Can I have a ticket if you do?
Congrats too Ted on having raised the profile for the “competence” and “quality” of the Takki as communications chief and the Tower Hamlets Media and Public Relations team in general!
I wonder if other developers looking to do business with Tower Hamlets will now be thinking seriously about following the lead of ‘Live Nation’ re the indemnity clause?
Who cares I am certain the majority of us residents will try to get as far away from Tower Hamlets when the Olympics hit us
I guess it’s better to have some form of funding to use the park because the last administration was thinking of turning it into a coach/car park with no benefits for the community except Cars/coaches so I suppose we have got something in the coffers and some free tickets for a change so not really a big story there perhaps you should check out Live nation Profit margins
($ in millions) September 30, 2011 Cash and cash equivalents $782.6
Client cash (333.9) event related (212.6) Accrued artist fees (11.2) Collections on behalf of others (35.6) Prepaid related to artist settlements/events 167.3
Free cash $ 356.Thats £222.19 Profits
Yep profits for a company based in LA perhaps we should have pushed for a better deal
Janet Wade, the secretary of the Friends of Victoria Park, has made this comment today on that group’s Facebook page. So angry is she about the lack of consultation by the council with the group on various issues in the park that she has announced she is resigning.
I have to say that there does seem to be a mentality in this administration that Victoria Park doesn’t really matter to those who care about it. They see it as an asset to be milked.
Here are Janet’s comments:
Have you seen the latest Fbook message from Richard Desmond, organiser of the Friends group, about the subsequent consultation?
Here it is:
Cllr Joshua Peck
Bow West