Salisbury Mayor hails City Hall move towards reopening as a 'big deal'
Mayor Sven Hocking is hopeful the venue will open this year
The potential reopening of Salisbury City Hall later this year has been hailed as a 'big deal' by the City's Mayor.
The venue, which has been closed since January 2023, took a step towards welcoming the public again yesterday as Wiltshire Council approved a preferred tenant for the site.
While the Council has not confirmed the operators identity, it is widely understood to be Swindon's MECA.
Speaking to Greatest Hits Radio, Mayor of Salisbury, Sven Hocking said it will be a major boost to the local economy: "There'll be bands there, music there, arts events, cultural events, all sorts of other stuff which will bring people back into the city and also that will help with the night time economy, which is getting a bit of a hammering at the moment."
The Mayor said the investment in the city, with the River Park project, renovations to Fisherton Street and the improvements being made to the Station Forecourt, will be paying-off even more as a result of City Hall's reopening.
Mayor Hocking told us the process has been 'long and torturous', thanks to many hurdles that needed to be overcome.
As the process was led by Wiltshire Council, there were a number of processes that were required on the road to reopening.
"We've been pushing it as fast as we can," Mayor Hocking said, adding that had the responsibility of getting the doors open again fallen to the private sector, it could have been achieved much quicker.
He said: "There's all these different processes that you have to follow in the public sector, many more i's to dot, many more t's to cross, so that's why it's taking so long and that's why it's been so torturous. But we've got there!"
Work to do on the building before reopening
There is still some work to be done to the building before it can be handed over to the new tenant.
The ceiling requires some work, which Mayor Hocking insists isn't as bad as some have claimed.
"The building isn't falling down, it's not collapsing, it's not full of water, it's still lit, it's still being heated, so the condition of the building is still good," the Mayor said, adding that there are some other remedial maintenance that's also needed.
But after that's completed, he said the new tenant would have 'free reign' on the interior.
"If they want to turn the bar area into something that's three times the size because it suits their operational model, then off they go, they're more than welcome to do that," Mayor Hocking told us.
We're told that the new operator has ideas on what they would like to do, with the Mayor telling us they're ready to spend the cash needed to shape the facility.
As to when the venue could open it's doors, Mayor Hocking said he would be 'astounded' if it's not this year.
However, he said it's up to the operator as to a specific date.