Culture secretary Matt Hancock has backed calls by opposition councillors on Derby City Council For the Assembly Rooms to be refurbished.
Hancock said he would prefer the 40-year-old venue to have a £10 million upgrade rather than being knocked down and rebuilt at a cost of £44 million.
The Assembly Rooms has been closed since March 2014 when fire caused extensive damage to the plant room on the roof of the venue’s car park. The plant room powered the electricity and lighting supply.
Hancock visited the venue at the invitation of Conservative councillors. He said, “inside, it’s like people put their glasses down yesterday after the last performance. It’s in good nick. You can see there’s a new acoustic ceiling in the main area and I think the plans to refurbish and reopen it are very exciting.”
The Labour-controlled city council intends to replace the Market Place building with a 3,000-capacity music and performance venue. It was proposing to replace the building even before the fire.
Hancock added, “I go around the country looking at performance spaces and here we’ve got a good one which could open pretty quickly with a refurb.
“The question you’ve got to ask is for four times the money are you going to get a four times better facility. I think it would be very hard to see that.
“The Conservatives’ plan will save money, meaning the council doesn’t have to borrow and put up council tax in order to pay for it.”
The council consulted the public over a number of options for the Assembly Rooms, with 43% saying the building should be replaced and 28% calling for a refurbishment.
City Council deputy leader Martin Rawson said, “a new music and performance venue hasn’t been chosen because it’s the cheapest option, nor because it’s the option that will open in the shortest timescale. But it’s the option that residents, businesses and partners have told us they want to see; it’s sustainable for the council’s finances and it has the potential to transform the cultural landscape of Derby.”