Theatre 'frustrated' after car park offer rejected

The boss of a theatre in Leicester which had a bid to to take over an empty car park refused said he is "frustrated" that the site remains closed.

Curve Theatre confirmed it tried to take over the running of the Rutland Centre, which was one of five NCP car parks across the city to close in March.

While operators have been found for three of the sites, the car park, which is next to the theatre, remains closed.

Theatre bosses said they made a bid to temporarily run the car park amid fears of the impact the closure would have on audience booking rates, and the wider ramifications for the bars and restaurants in the city's Cultural Quarter.

Curve's chief executive, Chris Stafford, said the theatre was keen to get the car park - which closed following the collapse of NCP - open "as soon as possible".

"The closure of the car park is a real concern for us," he said.

"As soon as it was announced, we received hundreds of comments across our social media channels from audiences who have expressed real concern about whether or not they will be able to come to Curve.

"I absolutely accept there is an impact on the business.

"Some shows haven't quite done the audiences we would have expected.

"There are other factors that will have an impact, so it is early days for us to say exactly what the impact is."

Stafford said other businesses located in the city's Cultural Quarter are also feeling the impact of the closure.

"We're really frustrated, not just for us but for all of the businesses in the Cultural Quarter," he said.

"We have a car park literally next door to our theatre, in the heart of the Cultural Quarter, which is currently boarded up.

"As winter starts to set in, my concern is that audiences that are willing to walk a little further in the city centre to car parks will then rethink whether they really fancy doing that when it's dark and cold outside."

Such was their concern over the closure, Curve put in a bid to run the site for as long as needed while the owners found an operator.

The offer, which was below the asking price, was rejected.

"We really wanted to do all we can for both our audiences here, but the wider Cultural Quarter too, to do all we can to get it back up and running," he said.

Leicester City Councillor Zuffar Haq, who has been involved in negotiations, said the closure's impact on the city centre economy means securing a deal is urgent.

He said owners Cavan Investments Ltd, a Nottingham-based firm which bought the building for £16.7 million in December 2018, "need to be realistic about the charges they can expect".

Leicester City Council said there are more than 10,000 alternative parking spots in the city despite NCP closures, and has been working with these owners to secure a new operator.

A city council spokesperson said: "We have had discussions with the owner of the Rutland Centre site, but there is currently no update on the position.

"In the meantime, we are working with Curve to help promote other nearby car parks, such as the Park Safe award-winning facilities at Newarke Street."

The BBC attempted to contact Cavan Investments for comment.

Listen to BBC Radio Leicester on Sounds and follow BBC Leicester on Facebook, on X, or on Instagram. Send your story ideas to eastmidsnews@bbc.co.uk or via WhatsApp on 0808 100 2210.