The City of Edinburgh Council has approved the application for a new 8,500-capacity arena in Edinburgh, which will be constructed by AEG Europe and its partners. The venue will be built on an 18,500 sq m site located to the west of the Scottish capital, with AEG branding it as a state-of-the-art venue that will put Edinburgh on the map for live entertainment. The new arena is set to inject £520m per annum into the city’s economy, with an additional £83m per annum being reinvested in the local economy. It is predicted to see 700,000 visitors annually and create up to 1,000 jobs.
Alex Hill, CEO and President of AEG Europe, expressed delight at the green light, adding: “Having worked closely with City of Edinburgh Council, we strongly believe the arena will deliver huge benefits to the city throughout every stage of the building’s life cycle – from development to completion, for years to come when we’re bringing the world’s best artists to the Scottish stage.” Meanwhile, Alistair Wood, Executive Vice President of Real Estate and Development for AEG Europe, disclosed that the firm would be looking to source potential funding and finalise the appointment of an external contractor soon.
The new arena in Edinburgh will be massive for the city, and it’s estimated that it will help bring much-needed revenue to the local, ailing music industry. Presently, grassroots venues across Scotland are reeling from the one-two punch of a pandemic that shuttered their doors for 18 months and the long-term economic downturn that has only exacerbated their plight. In fact, it was one of the venues that faced pressure from the Music Venue Trust (MVT) last year to invest back in grassroots music spaces or else risk being denied the right to operate. However, AEG Europe insists that the new arena development respects sustainability measures, in keeping with AEG Europe Guest Experience and Sustainability principles and that it hopes to make the new arena one of the most environmentally friendly in the UK.
As pointed out by Dame Caroline Dinenage, Chair of the Culture, Media and Sport Committee, “the ongoing wave of closures is not just a disaster for music, performers and supporters in local communities up and down the country, but also puts at risk the entire live music ecosystem,” with grassroots venues in crisis due to declining audience numbers. The new arena will hopefully improve the overall fortunes of the industry and bring world-renowned artists to perform on Scottish soil
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