City Hall lease agreed

Wiltshire Council have announced that it has formally agreed a lease with the management team behind Music Entertainment Culture and Arts (MECA) to run City Hall in Salisbury.

Music Entertainment Culture and Arts (MECA) will run City Hall, with the locally-based company taking over full operation of the venue.

Today it was announced that Salisbury City Hall Ltd, from the management team that operates MECA in Swindon, has signed a lease agreement with the council for 25 years in a deal that will see City Hall reopen as an entertainment venue later this summer.

Wiltshire Council made the following statement today:
The council is in the process of carrying out repairs and maintenance and making improvements to the external fabric of the building so it's in the best condition possible for when it rejoins the city's arts, cultural and entertainment scene. The new operators will carry out its own works to improve the overall customer experience at the venue and it is planned these will take place concurrently with the council's.

The council has carried out thorough due diligence to reach this stage. It first carried out an insightful market engagement process, which established that, after speaking to potential third-party providers, offering the venue on a long-term lease would be the preferred arrangement. It then worked with Savills to formally market the venue to prospective tenants and at the end of this process, following further due diligence, the team at MECA was identified as the preferred operator.  

City Hall opened in 1961 and is one of the largest live entertainment venues in the region, with capacity for more than 1,000 people. It has previously played host to the likes of David Bowie, Led Zeppelin, The Beatles and household names in the world of comedy. From December 2020 to January 2023, City Hall was used as a COVID-19 mass vaccination centre, playing its part to keep thousands of local people safer during the pandemic.

The MECA venue in Swindon has been a fixture in the town's entertainment sector for almost 100 years. It has been known as MECA since 2010 following full refurbishment where it has evolved into a commercial and community-based events venue catering to everyone and continues to go from strength to strength. The addition of City Hall to the group ensures both venues are in a position to bring bigger and better acts to the area.

The management of MECA, which is led by Justin Britchford, has confirmed the Salisbury venue will continue to be called City Hall.

Wiltshire Council Corporate Director for Place, Parvis Khansari said, "We are delighted that we have finalised an arrangement and that City Hall will reopen soon.

"We want City Hall to have the best chance of long-term success. Justin and his team have the passion, experience and expertise to ensure City Hall will retain its proud standing in the community and complement all the great things the city has to offer.

"Today marks the start of a new era for City Hall and when it re-opens its doors, I'm sure the city and wider area will come out and support it once again."

Justin Britchford added, "We are delighted to have been given this opportunity and cannot wait to get started. Wiltshire Council has worked tirelessly with us to make sure the venue will be a roaring success. We have some great plans for the venue and have listened to people's views on what they have missed the most while it has been closed. Support us by liking our Facebook page, signing up to our newsletter but most of all, by buying tickets for the events.

"We are working closely with local people to tap into their wealth of knowledge about City Hall and the surrounding area and have recruited some local managers to run the venue that have years of experience in similar venues.

"We look forward to welcoming you all to City Hall in the very near future."