Deal signals building work green light on £45.8m performance venue

One of the major Derby schemes being promoted at this year’s MIPIM is Becketwell – and this week a contract was signed with ASM Global to operate the performance venue element of the £200 million regeneration scheme.

The agreement between Derby City Council, developers St James Securities and ASM Global will see the world leading venue management and services company operate the £45.8 million venue.

ASM Global has entered into an unconditional Agreement for Lease with Derby City Council and St James Securities, which will give the green light for construction work to commence.

ASM Global, which has a global network of more than 350 venues around the world, will work with St James Securities and the city council on the design development of the venue, located in Derby city centre.

The new 3,500 capacity entertainment and events venue forms phase two of the Becketwell regeneration scheme, which is the most significant urban regeneration scheme in the city for more than 30 years.

Becketwell is one of 16 major schemes included in the Derby Investment Prospectus, which is being distributed by Team Derby and Derbyshire to investors from across the world at MIPIM this week.

Construction work is underway on phase one of the Becketwell scheme, which involves the construction of 259 build-to-rent apartments on the site of the former Debenhams store, in Victoria Street, which will be funded, acquired, and operated by Grainger plc.

The new performance venue will be built on the site of the former Pennine Hotel, Laurie House offices, multi-storey car park and Pink Coconut nightclub in Colyear Street and Padley House in Becket Street.

The new venue will be owned by the city council and leased to and operated by ASM Global, whose UK portfolio includes the OVO Arena Wembley, AO Arena in Manchester, Utilita Arena in Newcastle, the first direct Arena in Leeds, Olympia London and OVO Hydro, in Glasgow.

The Becketwell venue is expected to significantly add to the cultural offering in the city.

It will offer a larger, more flexible space than the city centre has had in the past and will collaborate with and complement the activities of Derby Arena to provide the best possible events programme for Derby and the wider region.

It will be a scalable space capable of staging a range of concerts, stand-up comedy, family shows, musical theatre, exhibitions, and business events.

The venue is set to host over 200 cultural and commercial events each year and attract an additional 250,000 visitors to Derby.

It is also expected to create over 200 new local jobs, generate more than £10 million GVA per year for the area, diversify the economy and increase levels of investment in surrounding areas of the city centre.

Councillor Chris Poulter, leader of the city council, said: “This is an exciting milestone in delivering the Becketwell performance venue.

“This new and flexible space is a key part of putting culture back into the heart of Derby.

“We are delighted to be moving on the next steps of this journey working together with long term partners ASM Global and St James Securities.

“This ambitious venue, run by a world-leading operator, will create hundreds of jobs, attract investment and generate millions of pounds each year for the city along with attracting new visitors and residents to Derby city centre.”

Tom Lynch, group commercial director and senior vice-president for Europe at ASM Global, said: “We’re delighted to have closed this exciting deal with Derby City Council and St James Securities to bring to market such an ambitious state-of-the-art venue.

“ASM Global looks forward to building on the great success of our UK venue portfolio and leveraging our strength in venue programming and commercialisation, to further develop the cultural landscape in the Midlands and support the ongoing growth of the region’s economy.”

Paul Morris, director of St James Securities, said: “We are pleased to have concluded our agreement with Derby City Council and ASM Global, who have a global reputation for excellence.

“We look forward to moving this exciting project to the construction phase and deliver this scheme to the people of Derby and the wider region.

“Closing the performance venue deal and starting on site this month continues the success story at Becketwell with over £85 million of development now underway.

“We will continue to build on these successes as we look to bring forward further mixed-use phases in the coming months.”