Plans lodged for town centre concert venue
VENUE TO HOLD UP TO 200 SEATS AND A BAR UNDER LODGED PLANS
PLANNING permission has been sought to create a new state of the art concert hall in the heart of Wexford town. The move is being made by Brian Byrne of Lantern Events Ltd, as he aims to create a new venue with a seated capacity of around 200 and a standing capacity in the region of 400 with an entrance from the old Wesleyan Chapel on Rowe Street and stretching back into what was most recently Byrne’s World of Wonder toy store fronting onto Mallin Street. The plans also include a bar and a box office area.
An application is currently before Wexford County Council’s planning department, with a decision expected by March. Outlining his vision, Brian explained:
‘ The proposed venue will have a capacity of 200 seats and the programme of events will have stand up comedy, acoustic singer songwriters and bands along with some kids shows. It may also be used occasionally for small day time conferences.’
There’s a degree of synchronicity to the plans too, as they would return the building to its original use - a band hall.
‘ The chapel was built in the 1830s and the building to the rear (the former toy shop), was used as a band and lecture hall as far back as the 1890s. It closed in the 60s and then Jenkins’ department store had it before my Dad bought it. Then it closed again back in 2011 and has only been used for storage since.’
‘It would be really nice to be able to revert to what it was originally built for,’ he continued.
‘I think old buildings like that were always built with acoustics in mind. We employed consultants to carry out extensive acoustic testing and they were hugely impressed with the building – 130 years ago there were no PA systems so the building was constructed both to keep sound in, and provide lovely acoustics for the audience without the need for a modern PA system.’
‘ The old band hall part is a real hidden gem tucked away on Mallin Street and has remained largely unnoticed for most of its 130 year life. If we’re successful in our application, it would be a privilege to be able to bring it back to its original use and breathe new life back into this building. Both the chapel and the band hall were constructed as places of gathering for people and we are both excited and fortunate to have the chance to bring them back to their intended use.’
Lantern Events moved its box office from the Main Street up to the Wesleyan Chapel on Rowe Street last year, and now Covid lockdowns have provided the opportunity to grow the idea of a new venue for the town.
‘It’s an idea I had around three years ago,’ Brian said. ‘I suppose I got busy with our other events and the rest of the business then, so it was put on the back burner. I suppose lockdown has allowed us to look at the business for scratch and, if there’s one good thing to come from Covid, it might be that we actually get this idea off the ground.’
Certainly qualified to spot an opening, Brian believes there is a gap in the market for a midsized venue in town, which this project could certainly fill.
‘ The capacity and programme of events fills a gap in the performance infrastructure in Wexford,’ he said. ‘We have some excellent venues like the Wexford Arts Centre, Jerome Hynes Theatre, Crown Live and others who have exciting programmes and bring audiences and economic impact to Wexford, but as a promoter we are offered a lot of comedy and music throughout the year that we have to refuse as we can’t get availability in the existing venues, or the existing venues aren’t the right fit for the show.’
‘I’m an absolute advocate that the more gigs that happen in Wexford, the more gigs WILL happen in Wexford – more gigs and venues don’t take from the existing venues, they bring Wexford to a critical mass where more and more people come to Wexford to be entertained and we become the destination in the South East for comedians, bands, artists and the audiences that they bring.’
‘Over 60 years of the Opera Festival, Fringe Festival and the Singing Pubs, 10 years of the Spiegeltent Festival, the Light Opera Society, Drama Groups, Wexford Arts Centre and many more have built an ecosystem, a goodwill, a reputation in Wexford that if you come here for a night out you have your choice of excellent hotels, atmospheric pubs and restaurants, and venues with a wide array of artistic talent to be enjoyed. We believe that this proposed venue will add to and strengthen that offering for everyone’s benefit.’
In terms of the location, the new venue would slot right into Wexford’s ‘cultural spine’ of the National Opera House, Wexford Library, Wexford Arts Centre and on down to Selskar.
Brian is reasonably hopeful of successfully emerging from the planning process.
‘I think initial feedback has been positive,’ he said.
‘We carried out extensive acoustic testing to assess how things would be from noise point of view for neighbours. It was even better than we thought, because these buildings were really well built and have thick walls. We’ve also had an archaeological report carried out in advance, so we’re hopeful that any areas of concern have already been analysed. That being said, we don’t want to pre-empt anything and there’s still a process to pass through.’
‘Should we be successful though, I would imagine it would take a couple of months to fit it out, sort out the electrics and put the stage in etc. I’d imagine though that, all going well and Covid dependent, we could hopefully open the doors early in the summer.’