Former Queen's Hall site consultation is open

Since the demolition of the former tram shed the site's a car park

Leeds City Council is consulting on a plan for what is currently a car park.

The former Queen's Hall site on Sovereign Street is a high profile opportunity in the heart of Leeds.

Close to the railway station and the waterfront it is a prime area for regeneration.

The area is also part of the council's plans for a new city centre park.

Now the council wants your views on a draft planning statement.

Redevelopment of the site could open up two railway arches that will connect through to the Dark Arches and Granary Wharf area of the city centre.

South bank

The move would link to the prime shopping and office quarters of the city. To the south is the river Aire and a new proposed city centre park on the south bank.

The Queen's Hall was a former tram shed that played host to a varied collection of events until it was demolished in 1989.

The massive site, at the junction of Sovereign Street and Swinegate, is still a car park. And Leeds is still waiting for a large performance venue to be built (although the Arena is now firmly in the wings).

The Queen's Hall housed non-musical events too, including flea markets and even a couple of Great British Beer Festivals.

Concert venue

In the past Roxy Music graced the Queens Hall

As a concert venue it saw an early performance from the Beatles in 1963 - although Acker Bilk topped the bill that particular night.

It was a cavernous venue with rudimentary acoustics but saw many famous gigs like the Futurma festivals that in 1979 featured Joy Division.

Other bands to play there included the Clash, the Faces and Roxy Music.

Councillor Richard Lewis said:

"Sovereign Street is a very exciting part of our vision for the city centre; a prime spot for regeneration with huge potential to attract jobs and investment to that part of the centre.

"We've published this draft document to give as many people as possible the opportunity to tell us what they think about the plans for this area and to open up a debate about how we can deliver the new city centre park."

Comment

You have until Friday 18 March 2011 to comment on the proposals. A final version of the Sovereign Street Planning Statement will then be produced for all future development at that site.

The full planning statement is available by emailing [e-mail] .

The document is also available on the council's website .