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Leeds Arena: Planning application is submitted for project
The Leeds Arena scheme has taken another step forward with the submission of a formal planning application for the £55m project.
It comes just weeks after SMG Europe, the company chosen to operate the venue, signed a 25-year lease agreement with the council.
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Senior councillors say it is a further sign the key regeneration scheme remains on track, despite the legal wrangles and political rows that have recently surrounded it.
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The application is for a 12,500 seat multi-use arena with associated bars, restaurants and shops at Clay Pit Lane. Designs recently unveiled show a "super theatre" interior, which those behind the project say will offer the best viewing experience in the country. The seating bowl will fan out from the stage in two tiers, with the furthest seat just 68m away from the stage.
The arena is expected to create hundreds of jobs and inject over 25m into the local economy.
Councillor Andrew Carter, executive member for development and regeneration, said submission of the the council's application represented another positive step for the scheme.
It suffered a blow last month when the Government said it would not approve regional development agency Yorkshire Forward's 18m contribution towards the project in its current form. Ministers wanted the council and Yorkshire Forward to carry out extra work to ensure the scheme provided best possible value for money.
The decision followed lobbying by Sheffield MPs, who argued that Yorkshire Forward funding should not be used on a scheme that would benefit one area of Yorkshire over another, and also sparked a row between Coun Carter and Leeds's Labour MPs.
Coun Fabian Hamilton (Lab, Leeds North East) criticised Coun Carter's approach to the issue, particularly his claim that the city would go it alone if necessary. Coun Carter has submitted a Freedom of Information (FOI) request to the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills asking for clarity on meetings and correspondence relating to the Leeds Arena.
He said: I submitted a Freedom of Information request to gain clarity on exactly what the Government and all its MPs have been doing behind the scenes.
"As yet I have heard nothing back.
"I have asked to see copies of correspondence that have been exchanged between the Leeds MPs and the Department and the Sheffield MPs and the Department."
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Saturday 04 February 2012
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