Reasons why 23,500-seat Co-op Live was given licence revealed as councillors make promise

Co-op Live was granted a licence to open because it ‘was aware of the challenges in operating and demonstrated the capacity to learn, grow, adapt’, a report has said.

The new 23,500-seat venue, which will open in April opposite the Etihad Stadium, saw its licence application approved last week (March 1). That came after a two-day hearing the week before in which main rivals the AO Arena, charity the Music Venue Trust, some local councillors, and scores of residents nearby objected.

During the hearing, fears were expressed over how thousands of people would get home from the east Manchester site in the early hours of the morning. The venue said it would put shuttle buses on to take customers back to the city centre, and is investing in a walking route from the sports campus to the Holt Town tram stop.

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Now, the written reasonings of the committee — made up of councillors Julie Connolly, Glynn Evans, and Thomas Judge — have been revealed in a report made available to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

The 21-page document concluded: “We are of the opinion that this premises will be a significant benefit to the local community, Manchester and the wider region.

“We recognise, in licensing terms, the likely impacts from the operation. We have carefully considered the draft operating schedule and are satisfied that these impacts can be addressed by the proposed conditions and operating procedures.

“We were convinced that the applicant was aware of the challenges in operating such a venue and demonstrated the capacity to learn, grow, adapt and most importantly for it to communicate with (as well as listen