Wolverhampton reveals first look at new Civic Halls

THE City of Wolverhampton Council has revealed how the refurbished Civic Halls will look after their multi-million-pound refurbishment.

The schemes originally proposed for the concert venues have been changed slightly as a result of structural tests.

While in keeping with the original refurbishment proposals, the initially proposed U shape balcony for the Civic Hall has now been confined to the rear of the auditorium (see below).

A new glass-covered bar area will be installed above the main entrance of the Civic Hall, servicing the new upper level.

The work will see the venue’s capacity increased by 539 seats to a total of 2,554, with the standing capacity increasing to 3,549.

The Wulfrun Hall (bottom) will also get a balcony, increasing its seating capacity by 230 to 862, while the new standing capacity will be 1,340.

Enabling works are expected to continue until September 1, with a contractor to be appointed in time for the main works to start in January 2017 and complete in March 2018.
 
How the revised Civic Hall will look The city council has estimated that the project will safeguard 637 jobs in the wider economy and once-complete, the auditoriums will attract an additional 330,000 visitors a year to the city, resulting in a further 120 direct and indirect jobs.
 
Cllr John Reynolds, cabinet member for City Economy, said: “The Civic Halls have been around since the 1930s and are an important part of our visitor economy – providing jobs and generating millions of pounds every year by staging nationally acclaimed shows.
 
“As part of our regeneration plans for the city we recognised this Grade II listed building is in need of refurbishment, as well as improvement to ensure it remains a thriving venue to be proud of.
 
“The increased capacity of the Civic Halls will make it a more attractive place in the entertainment market, enabling it to attract significantly more popular and prestigious acts, while retaining the current characteristics that make it popular with performers, producers and audiences.”
 
The improvements will enable the Civic Halls to develop a partnership with the City of Wolverhampton College to deliver BTEC performing arts courses – with a target of 2,500 learners. This could create 100 jobs and apprenticeships.
 
The improvement programme in total will cost £14.4m and will be part funded by a £6.6m Black Country Local Enterprise Partnership Growth Deal grant.
 
The revised costs also include an extra £2.6m, which will be covered by additional net income generated from the refurbished Civic Halls over 25 years.
 
Both venues will reopen in time to accommodate the Grand Slam of Darts and other events in November and December 2017. The Civic Hall will close for its final facelift for the first three months of 2018, before fully opening just in time to celebrate its 80th birthday.
 How the Wulfrun Hall will look

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