After almost two years of the competition to find a buyer and two preferred bidders later,
we take a look at all of those interested parties we keep hearing about. English Partnerships,
the agency handling the sale, says it will be at least mid March before it announces how it
intends to manage the process from now on. It may have to give potential bidders many weeks,
probably months, to draw up detailed plans, and makes an embarrasingly empty Dome on election day a
distinct possibility.
LEGACY'S KNOWLEDGE CITY
Despite losing its preferred bidder status, LEGACY is still in the running, but it does admit to considering its position. We've written about Legacy before, so check here for more details.
NEW DOME PARTNERS This one has probably received the most press attention in recent days, because it involves everybody's favourite frenchman, PY. He wants to keep the Dome as a visitor attraction and include some of its existing zones, whilst turning the central arena into a 20,000-seat venue for events like concerts and boxing matches. His only confirmed backer is the Ministry of Sound nightclub operator, James Palumbo. He is talking to others - and in the past has had inconclusive discussions with Nomura - and suggests he could have the Dome up and running as early as May. Detailed information about his bid is scarce. QUINTAIN ESTATES CONSORTIUM Another major bid has come from a consortium of property companies led by QUINTAIN ESTATES, which already owns land on the Greenwich peninsula just south of the Dome, and includes Grosvenor Estates. The consortium is in discussion with the Tussauds Group, the BBC and the concert promoter Harvey Goldsmith. The BBC had discussions with several of the original bidders for the Dome, and has made no secret of its ambition to start some kind of BBC-themed attraction, including an opportunity to see behind the scenes of BBC programmes and watch programmes being made and broadcast. EXPERIENCE CONSORTIUM A bid of £135m has come from the EXPERIENCE Consortium, founded by another property company, Pilton, and backed by a Malaysian developer, Country Heights and an American specialist in redeveloping contaminated land, Cherokee Investments. EXPERIENCE wants to turn the Dome's interior into a "flexible auditorium" for concerts and sports events, holding up to 55,000 people. It has also been talking to the BBC, Tussauds and Harvey Goldsmith. SPORTSDOME CONSORTIUM SPORTSDOME decided on a development at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham when its original bid for the Dome was rejected. It still believes the Dome's best future for the Dome is as a sports venue and may rebid.The Dome. One Amazing Day. One Year Only. Thank God.