Manchesterers have a few days left to take a say on the plans for a massive new musical stadium next to Etihad Stadium.
The 23,500-seat Eastlands would be the largest in Britain if plans of the American sports and entertainment company Oak View Group (OVG) were approved.
As the age of consultation draws to an end on Monday, the allocation has already attracted fierce opposition from the owners of today’s Manchester Arena and a number of city-centre companies who are concerned that it will generate opportunities and out of town.
A report commissioned through OVG in reaction to such considerations states that there is a prospective market for an additional 2.5 million annual visits through 2035, which, he said, could simply be two large-scale sites.
But Manchester Arena operator ASM Global says the projections are “overly optimistic” about its own more modest expansion forecasts. Meanwhile, the organization also revealed its own plans for a dramatic reform of the Manchester Arena, which would increase its capacity to 24,000.
The men. met with the heads of both sites to learn the latest developments in their plans and positions.
Mark Donnelly, who oversees the assignment of Eastlands Arena as a leading operations officer at OVG International, said his goal is to create a “world-class” venue to help restore Manchester on the overseas stage.
“We’re going to build the most productive musical destiny in Europe,” he said.
“It’s an arena built for music that will suit the game, rather than the classic style: you built an arena for the game and it may fit and host music, and that’s probably the style of the O2 and the existing Manchester Arena.
“We have brayly designed and will build a position focused on music. We’ve done things like keep the ceiling as low as possible to see and reflect the hot, sweaty pieces you go through when you’re a student or get I think everyone remembers and loves.
“All seats have lines of sight. All are closer than the equivalent seat of the O2 or the existing stadium.
“We will have amenities for visitors and fans, but also facilities suitable for artists, so that the technical and behind-the-scenes spaces have fulfilled all their wishes and can meet the growing demands of traveling shows.
“The screens are getting bigger with more kits and more production requirements, and we can make loading screens very simple and efficient.”
The place will also feature the latest generation of audiovisual and acoustics, he added.
He told M.E.N that he was confident in his projections, despite Covid-19’s “devastating” short-term effect on the live music industry.
“We are convinced that Manchester can not only have two places, but both can thrive,” he said.
“We have conducted many studies and studies on the market, on the industry, where we think it is going, as well as many consumer-based studies in Manchester and its broader area of influence, to understand other people’s behaviour are now and the opportunity for us to increase the number of times other people are going to go.
“A mixture of all this underlies the call to research we have done. We think it’s pretty fake and very believable.”
He said there have been “big changes” in the live entertainment industry over the past decade, with an increase in the number of open stadiums in the country and the volume and variety of occasions they host.
“We have noticed an increase in the number of occasions, an increase in the number of artists traveling and the importance of live entertainment for their economic success, but also the type of occasions continues to increase,” he said.
“There are new types of family occasion circles with things like Marvel, cinematic experiences, Walking with Dinosaurs concerts, Disney continues to grow and the opportunities that the phenomenal expansion of e-sports brings to the market.
“So we are very positive about the market, we are very positive about Manchester as a domestic market as a component of overall growth, and we believe that Manchester deserves a place of global elegance.”
“We believe this will restore Manchester to the foreign stage.”
The venue would present an offer to host primary flagship events, he added, pointing to televised main awards and multiple foreign performances and sporting events. This was also expected to be an e-sports destination.
“We’ve had places like London, Paris and New York that have hosted total weekends from the end of other gaming franchises and we, Manchester, are asking for something like that,” he added.
Donnelly said the effect of the existing pandemic on businesses in the city centre had not been taken lightly, but believes the live music industry will make a partial setback early next year with a more complete setback until 2022. .
He added that the UFO understands the considerations of existing sand.
“They’ve had a career almost out of control in the market for the last 25 years, so just because of an anti-competitive position and unable to protect their own business, I think we all fully perceive why they’re looking to make the arguments they are,” he said.
“We disagree with your analysis, credibility and detail of the analysis. We believe that what they have presented is not a realistic perspective for the market and projections.”
OVG’s own projections are based on studies and studies by economists pwC, Ekosgen and Amion.
“The three addressed it differently, but very credible evidence that contradicted what the existing arena presented,” Donnelly said.
“We are confident in the rigour we have applied.”
He said they revealed there would be a “net positive” effect on downtown Eastlands Arena restaurants, bars and hotels.
“We can demonstrate that when you look at the old and projected patterns of visitors in the Eastlands area, whether for a concert at the existing stadium or through our arena projections, there is a strong propensity for those visitors to pass through the city center and begin or end their night in the city center.
“They will be in a downtown bar or in a place to eat in advance, so they can return to the city center for a drink before returning home.
“In our survey, more than 30 according to a hundred said they would do it one night and stay in a downtown hotel. We think it will be a transparent positive.
“We believe that the total number of occasions in Manchester will increase, that the total number of visitors to Manchester will increase and that the city centre will take the lion’s percentage of the net annual accumulation in expenses that we believe will bring the sand.”
It is just over a kilometre from Manchester Piccadilly, he said, adding: “The city centre is developing eastward all the time. If you look at Ancoats and the progression that’s going on there, I think it’s just going to increase.
“Over time, I think the campus will be a component of the city’s center and not the outdoors.”
However, he said the post was intended to be a “good neighbor” for Eastlands citizens and offer employment opportunities for the local population.
The venue is expected to be completed in 2023, subject to a building permit, and Donnelly said he would love to open it with a Manchester performance show from the Madchester era to supply day.
“Whatever happens, we will open with a fantastic program of occasions that will be an eclectic combination and will be for all tastes. I think it’s going to be spectacular,” he said.
“We have a lot of paintings to do before we get to this point. Our first obstacle is to plan the arrival, hopefully, a little over a month, and then we’ll have to build the thing.”
Donnelly said the OVG welcomed the Arena’s plans to invest in the existing site.
“I think probably everyone wants a little love and attention, and I think it’s very appealing that if they really believed in some of the top fatal projections that have come forward, I’m not sure they will. Propose renovation plans themselves, ” he said.
Tom Lynch, Director of Progression for Europe at ASM Global, told M.E.N that Manchester Arena is advancing with its own transformation plans.
This ambitious new vision would increase capacity from 21,000 to 24,000, surpassing that of the OVG and making it the largest indoor stadium in Europe.
The redesign includes a comprehensive reform of the corridors and land committed to dressing rooms and VIP lounges. Restaurants and bars would also be in the “event ground”, committed to the sale of goods.
The exterior will be checked with redesigned approaches and a grass-covered roof.
“We are following our own transformational redevelopment plans to coincide with the Arena’s anniversary celebrations,” Lynch said.
“We have conducted extensive public and neighborhood consultations and have had very positive feedback so far. We look forward to the opportunity to put these plans into action, for the long-term Manchester Arena and the economy of the city centre of which we are second-class proud.
Lynch said the existing arena is the main driving force for assisting restaurants, bars and department stores in the center.
Economic research conducted for THE ASM through Grant Thornton and Charles River Associates obviously shows that a moment outside the city gates would keep those corporations away, he argued.
“In many places is the Manchester Arena, and it is the location of the city centre, next to a major public transport exchange, making it such a dynamic business engine for the city’s many bars, restaurants and retail stores,” he says.
“We have two independent economic tests that obviously show that a sand in Eastlands will be used to keep exhibits and crowds away from downtown, and that spending simply won’t be replaced by other people who are meant to eat downtown. before leaving town, to get to Eastlands for an exhibition.
“At a time when retail and recreation face the main challenge of a pandemic, it is transparent that we will have to prioritize the city centre and not inspire the city’s outdoor progress that exacerbates the effects of COVID.
Lynch said the ASM is still reviewing OVG’s most recent report, but feels it does not adequately address the considerations of Manchester Arena and other downtown companies.
“The fact is that the proposed allocation is an outdoor location in the city, which we have made very transparent and that will attract the center’s spending,” he said.
“OVG asked other people if they would like bars and restaurants downtown before an occasion, however, their own transportation plans show that other people have to arrive in Eastlands 3 hours before an exhibition and stay an hour after an occasion due to lack of public transportation.
“It is illogical for these same people to drink or eat before the exhibition in the city center. In all cases, our own surveys have shown that more than one part of other people would probably go through the center less if there wasn’t a gated post to downtown, let alone eat in the city.”
ASM calls on the Manchester Council to conduct its own independent studies to address discrepancies between its findings and those of the OVG.
“OVG has hired a new economic representative to forecast a 1.5% expansion in arena events, while independent economic analysts Charles River Associates have forecast an expansion of just 5%, over old trends and expansion,” he said.
“The incredibly positive projections of OVG lack credibility and, fortunately, one does not want to be an analyst to perceive that this type of expansion projection is very unusual.
“We hope the board has requested its own independent investigation of market demand, rather than relying on misapplied implementation.”