Mareel - Cinema & Music Venue

[Marvin]

I know you think Marvin that the meeting with the SLTA was a shambles, but you must remember that these guys aren't PR gurus or public presenters. They are simply ordinary men worried about their business.

 

Granted, (perhaps I've been a little harsh) but you don't have to be a PR professional to show a bit of courtesy and politeness.

 

If you want to stand in front of people and call public meetings you have to conduct yourself in an orderly manner.

 

I was cut off from speaking when I was trying to help the SLTA.

 

Another important fact is that they are also competitors. Yes perhaps they bit of more than they could chew but they were united, what other competitors do you know would unite in such a way? . Nobody in Shetland likes to put their head above the daisies (it might get chopped off) but to their credit they did. At the very least they have sparked off a debate, which whatever angle you take it from was bound to come up sooner or later.

 

Agreed.

 

If any one should go on the forum to debate this venue it should be one of the people from the aformentioned group.

 

The North Star nightclub has been offered to the council on more than one occasion (the last time was Feb 2006).

 

I would hope that Iain, Michael or somebody else from the licenced trade would join this debate (I seem to be the only one that's looking out for them on here).

[Guest Anonymous]

Its Saturday night!. They should be working!

 

The sound was poor on Wednesday though, I think JR's report in the Times hit it right.

 

IJ had a tough job, he had to be supportive to his customers who had obviously put him in a certain amount of pressure to help them.

 

I worked for Gray's and found both the Johnston boys OK.

[peeriebryan]

I urge shetlink users to inform SLTA members of the debate here on shetlink. Their contribution would be very valuable

[Pooks]

Alrighty! Coming in to this debate at a late stage so I am likely to be trodden on and thrown into the septic tank without even getting an enjoyable run down the drainage system but...

 

I think the main problem here is the money being spent. The SIC has a notorious history of wasting money. The public is finally becoming wise to the fact and realising that the money can't last for ever. The public has been crying for a Cinema/Bowling Alley/Music Venue now for longer than I want to remember.

 

I think the problem is that there has been a lack of consultation with the general public with what they actually want. This current topic regards the new Cinema/Music venue.

 

In my opinion this is a waste of money from the offset. The cinema side of things should be thrown out...at least in the meantime. Studies have shown that the market for going out and watching a new release is diminishing all the time. We already have the Garrison, which, although being quite uncomfortable is more than suitable for the needs of a community this size. The market for watching movies outside of your own living room is dying at a rapid pace due to the affordable price of home cinema setups and the increased availability of pay per view television. This is going to shortly become a huge industry due to the wide availability of decent broadband and film companies releasing their movies in HD format over the good old internet.

 

After saying all that, I don't think the entire project is a bad idea. I just think it should be focused in a different direction. I am interested to hear whether DavieG's opinions are in agreement with mine or not.

 

Number 1: Ditch the cinema plans

Number 2: Focus more on the expansion of Shetland's music industry

Number 3: Provide a decent venue that people will want to visit

 

I would like to see a building that can provide a stage for a band to play on and sound like they should sound. I would like to see a commitment to the development of Shetland bands/Artists and somewhere that they can easily go for help on how to progress their careers.

 

Instead of a cinema why not incorporate a dedicated recording studio that local musicians can use for a hugely discounted cost compared to other alternatives? Surely if there was a way for the local musicians to easily gain an outlet for their music at a low cost they would jump at the chance? This would bring in revenue as well as enhancing the new music venue and promoting local bands.

 

Another option to be considered is somewhere that school children can go to learn about music. We have the new museum, why not create a dedicated Shetland Music Museum? A good example of this is the Stratosphere in Aberdeen. I took my little boy there last year, cost me a fair bit to get in (2 adults, 1 child) and, although interesting, had very little in terms of enjoyment. Why not have somewhere that collates the history of Shetland music and shows it off proudly? The tourists would love it. Money would be coming out of the SIC's ears and before you know it we would have a floating cinema from Bressay to Unst.

 

There are many options available to the SIC to gain revenue from this new venture but I fear the cinema is not one of them.

[Guest Anonymous]

I know you think Marvin that the meeting with the SLTA was a shambles, but you must remember that these guys aren't PR gurus or public presenters. They are simply ordinary men worried about their business.

 

Granted, (perhaps I've been a little harsh) but you don't have to be a PR professional to show a bit of courtesy and politeness.

 

If you want to stand in front of people and call public meetings you have to conduct yourself in an orderly manner.

 

I was cut off from speaking when I was trying to help the SLTA.

 

Another important fact is that they are also competitors. Yes perhaps they bit of more than they could chew but they were united, what other competitors do you know would unite in such a way? . Nobody in Shetland likes to put their head above the daisies (it might get chopped off) but to their credit they did. At the very least they have sparked off a debate, which whatever angle you take it from was bound to come up sooner or later.

 

Agreed.

 

If any one should go on the forum to debate this venue it should be one of the people from the aformentioned group.

 

The North Star nightclub has been offered to the council on more than one occasion (the last time was Feb 2006).

 

I would hope that Iain, Michael or somebody else from the licenced trade would join this debate (I seem to be the only one that's looking out for them on here).

 

hello guys just come back from Brae Up Helly Aa never knew this site existed until somebody told me about it tonight

I know we were not the polished article like some of you pros but we are trying our best. I am really worried about the future of Shetland, We are subsidising everything to the hilt which is unsustanable. As far as i am concerned we cannot keep throwing money away. We are facing the biggest council cutbacks in living memory and to me we should look very seriously at what we are doing. I do support music and the obvious benefits that could be obtained from development in this area. But for gods sake to spend the amount of money being suggested along with the obvious deficit, which you know will only add to one budget or another to my mind is madness. The council needs to sit back and look at the alternatives and utilising the facilities we already have. Everybody is entitled to an opinion ,and mine is that at this time we simply cannot afford this venue and to bash ahead with it at this time is against the interests of the majority of the people of Shetland. I dont own a pub or a cafe but I do agree with thier plight, these people do employ a lot of people and pay rates so they do have a right to complain.And i can assure you contrary to councilor Groat (drug?drink dealers)a lot of these people are on the brink( watch this space) and there will be job losses!

[Guest Anonymous]

As others have said, it’s good to see you on Davie and to see that this has sparked so much debate. Whatever side of the fence you are on, the interest in this topic is testament to the fact that people (with a few exceptions possibly) are really keen to see that decisions are made in the best interests of Shetland as a whole and that can only be a good thing. I’ve read all that you’ve said about the venue Davie and acknowledge all of the hard work that has gone into this by the Arts Trust and others. I do however remain opposed to this and think that we could keep on debating the pros and cons until we are blue in the face. The bottom line here is that some people feel that the social/cultural benefits spending £80,000 a year will bring is money well spent whilst others don’t and I don’t think a lot of people are going to change their views on that. There were just a few things I wanted to add though in response to some of the more recent posts.

 

As we all know, the Council really have a notorious reputation in Shetland for wasting money and lets face it, a pretty poor public image overall. I understand that the running costs of this won’t come from the same pot as the day to day running of other Council services but many people don’t see it that way and I am really concerned about the message this is sending out. Assuming that the issue of school closures is going to resurface again (which I would add I supported last time round) I would find it very difficult if I lived in one of the affected communities to accept that its ok for the Council to spend money on this with one hand yet say it doesn’t have enough money to run schools with the other. I can almost guarantee that I will be a rich man if I get a pound for every time Cinema and Music Venue is mentioned in the inevitable forthcoming debate about school closures. Not only that, but assuming that those places most likely to be affected by school closures are furthest from Lerwick (despite your proposals for outreach work) they are bound to feel that the venue will be of more benefit to people in the town than to them. All in all, I just don’t think it’s a good message to be sending out, that’s all. I know education and getting the facts over to people would help to a point but I just don’t think spending as much money on something we don’t ‘need’ is going to help the Council’s cause to convince people that it is serious about making sensible decisions about its spending.

 

The other thing I wanted to comment on was consultation. Now firstly, I accept that we live in a democracy and that if the majority of Councillors vote for this then it should go ahead. However, I still think that there is a huge but silent majority of people in Shetland who are opposed to this but haven’t been given a suitable opportunity to make their views known. I would have supported an anonymous postal referendum (accompanied by factual information addressing the questions people are likely to ask) as suggested by Councillor Jim Irvine. I work in the public sector (not the Council I would add) and know from experience that public meetings (which are always dominated by those who shout the loudest) are perhaps the worst form of consultation there is. When you consider the fact that Shetland is a small community and that Shetlanders by their nature don’t like to speak up against anything if it’s going to upset folk, then forums like this are ideal for folk to say what they really think anonymously. Although it’s far from scientific and open to abuse, three quarters of the people who have voted in this poll are against the new venue, but going by more ‘public’ opinion forums such as the letters page of the Shetland Times, you would be forgiven for thinking that there is very little resistance to this at all. I of course agree that anonymous personal attacks are unacceptable but my view is that everyone should be made to feel that they can voice their opinion and if anonymously is the way they feel most comfortable with then so be it.

[Guest Anonymous]

I agree with you totally. I have read in the Shetland Times that Davie intends to bring up 6 dj's per year,will they play on a Saturday? if so thats unfair to Alan Mcleod etc. and no wonder there complaining. I think Al took up 12 last year am I right Mac?

[Guest Anonymous]

What was Councillor Groat on about?. He said something bad about the Miller familly when Judanes went bust. To me a councillor should not be using language like this. At least that will be something both sides will agree on.

[DavieG]

It is indeed in the public domain, in fact I think it was in the paper on Friday. The total subisdy required for running ALL the SRT leisure facilities across Shetland is £2.4m per annum

[Guest Anonymous]

So why get us into even more debt. You don't have to be a Philledelphia lawyer to work out the money will dry up sometime.

[JVRTENNENTS]

We wir spikin aboot dis issue inda grub hut a friday an not wan o wis agreed dat it wis a guid idea.

How can you justify it whin afore the thing is built its predicted dat its goin tae loss 80 grand a year! I think councillors and supporters should look at da economics o it and agree dat it cant possibly pay for its self.

Bit dis is joost shetland fir you instead o tryin tae cut costs by using an existing building dey hiv ta big a brand new wan for ower 7 million!!

[Guest Anonymous]

THE NIXT COONCIL MIGHT OWERTURN IT ONYWE WANCE IF YON FOOLS ARE OUSTED IN 2007

[lumpsucker]

Re: the comment that the new venue will be taking up DJ's. Surely if public money is to be used to provide an arts venue the venue should put on events that cannot be provided by the commercial sector. Never mind the ethics of the local authority acting in competition with the private sector. This also brings up the Ice Factory point - if DJ's are going to be in the new venue why is that any different than the Ice Factory proposal - the same issues would apply to both. Unless they are DJ's for Classic FM!

 

Also why do they keep saying that having a 600 standing room venue will allow them to take up bigger bands from south - you would think that public demand for tickets for a big band would mean that Clickimin would have to be used - such as for Billy Connelly - they tried to have that in the Garrison and it had to be moved due to demand.

 

Last point can anyone remember the private initiative around 10 years ago to build a cinema at the DITT site - I think it was Thulium Leisure. I seem to think the SIC refused them planning.

[JVRTENNENTS]

How wid it attract bigger bands whin da Clickimin can hold aboot a thosand folk If I wis in a band and we hed da choice o playin in front o 1000 or 600 folk I ken whit option I wid go we. Big bands dunna come up here cis o da costs and da travellin obviously you git the odd 1 or 2 big bands cumin up lik Idlewild an Ocean Colour Scene bit generally Shetland is no an option!!

[JAStewart]

How wid it attract bigger bands whin da Clickimin can hold aboot a thosand folk If I wis in a band and we hed da choice o playin in front o 1000 or 600 folk I ken whit option I wid go we. Big bands dunna come up here cis o da costs and da travellin obviously you git the odd 1 or 2 big bands cumin up lik Idlewild an Ocean Colour Scene bit generally Shetland is no an option!!

 

The Undertones, The Amphetamenies, Bombskare, The Smiths, Therapy?, Idlewild, Electric Eel Shock, Elvis Costello, House of Rhythm, Cosmic Rough Riders, Proclaimers, Hayseed Dixie, Biffy Clyro, Saw Doctors, Jetplane Landing, Dr Feelgood, Paul Di'Anno, Viking Skull, Ikara Colt, Peter And The Testtube Babies, AB/DC, Piledriver.

 

There are more famous bands been up here than we'd think. But then again, still not enough!