Preston’s Guild Hall is finally on the road to being reopened after the legal row that has kept it closed for almost four years was resolved.
Simon Rigby was one of multiple claimants against the authority in a case to determine whether the town hall had acted legally in seizing the property. As the Post reported in January last year, Mr. Rigby’s estate opted not to continue to pursue what the late entrepreneur had previously said was a £9m claim – but other entities, including 11 subsidiaries of Preston Guild Hall, pressed ahead with their action.
The LDRS can now reveal the next steps in what is likely to be the relatively lengthy process of restoring the Guild Hall – which used to employ 100 people – to its place at the heart of the city’s cultural gems. First, town hall officers will develop a range of potential operating models for the venue which will be presented to councillors, who will make the final decision on how best to proceed.
For that reason, the authority is cautioning against any public expectation that people might be able to book tickets for events at a reopened Guild Hall in the very near future. Mr. Phillips added: “You need expert management as well – the running of a venue of that type [requires] you to understand the market and booking acts and content. [Promoters are planning] two years in advance, so it’s a gradual process – you can’t just fill [a schedule]…in a matter of weeks.
However, he added: “We are clear that we have the focus on it and the motivation to do the work. [The Guild Hall] has got to be resilient. None of us can guarantee things forever, but we absolutely want something that is going to work for the city. We hope to have something more to announce in the not too distant future.”
He added that the lack of a performance space had been keenly felt by those hospitality businesses that heavily depended on it. “You’ve got the theatre and you make money out of refreshments – but it’s got a tiny little bar area and there’s hardly anywhere to sit. So you’ve got this captive audience here and yet you can’t…generate the revenue that is there to be generated.”