Future of concert hall unknown
The future of the Perth Concert Hall is hanging in the balance as the WA Symphony Orchestra and Perth Theatre Trust compete for rights to run the cultural landmark.
City of Perth councillors and staff met yesterday to assess the future of the venue amid concerns about its programming diversity, its income-generating capacity and how to activate its uninviting public spaces.
The city owns the building and leases it to the Trust, which has managed it and several State Government-owned venues for the past 15 years through private contractor AEG Ogden.
The contract expires at the end of the year and the Trust will resume direct control of State-owned His Majesty's Theatre, State Theatre Centre and Subiaco Arts Centre.
The Trust has yet to secure a deal to run the Concert Hall on behalf of the city.
The WASO and the PTT have shown interest in managing the Concert Hall but neither has lodged a formal proposal.
Lord Mayor Lisa Scaffidi said the council was determining the long-term objectives and performance indicators for the iconic asset built in 1973.
"We are aware of the PTT timeframe seeking a decision but we intend to fully explore all options and then discuss a where-to-from here approach," Ms Scaffidi said.
Negotiations with the Trust and WASO were just two of the potential options, she said.
The Government announced in April that it would buck the privatisation trend of recent decades to reclaim direct management of Perth's major theatres.
