The government is claiming that Meridian Delta’s winning bid for the Dome will provide more money for the public purse than any of the earlier bids, including Legacy’s which would have provided £125m up front.
Meridian Delta Limited (MDL), the consortium made up of Quintain, Lend Lease and US entertainment giant Anschutz, was announced as the preferred bidder to redevelop the Millennium Dome and the Greenwich Peninsula this afternoon. The deal is expected to be signed by May 2002.
Dome minister Lord Falconer declined to say how much money the government would receive, as it was still subject to negotiations with MDL.
However David Hutton, head of European Operations for Lend Lease, said that the government’s share “could be as much as £500m.”
Shadow Culture Secretary Tim Yeo attacked the government, saying that it was giving the Dome away.
Falconer admitted this afternoon that the government would not be getting a single penny up front.
Instead the government will receive a profit share from the scheme at intervals over the development of the site, which could take up to 25 years.
MDL plans to convert the Dome into a 20,000-seat sports and live entertainment arena, surrounded by 76ha (189 acres) of offices and homes, including low-cost housing.
Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG), which owns the Lakers baseball team, will be responsible for running the Dome and has taken a 55-year lease on it.
Lend Lease and Quintain will develop the rest of the Greenwich peninsula site, which the MDL consortium will own on a 999-year lease. Terry Farrell & Partners’ Greenwich peninsula site masterplans can be viewed by clicking on the link below.
Quintain already owns 18.5 acres (7.48ha) of the peninsula.
EGi News 18/12/01
