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Huge news for music fans of Melbs: Live Nation has just announced plans for a 5,000-capacity concert venue in North Melbourne, promising more gigs, more opportunities for Aussie artists and another (as far as we can tell, pretty impressive) place to catch international touring acts. The purpose-built venue will form part of Arden Central – a new $7-billion cultural and parkland precinct. Just two minutes from Arden Station and 1.5 kilometres from Melbourne’s CBD, the new venue is expected to host more than 100 events each year. An exact opening date is still yet to be announced, but here’s what we know so far.
The venue will be designed by Blueprint Studio, Live Nation’s in-house design and development team, in collaboration with global architecture firm Populous. For Melbourne’s music community, the new space could help address the ongoing need for venues where Australian acts can build their audiences. The 5,000-person capacity is large enough for major touring shows, but the Live Nation team say they’re keen to allow artists to connect with crowds in a more intimate setting than a stadium. Alongside its concert program, Live Nation will establish a Community Events Fund to support local artists and community use of the venue. Mark Wilson from Melbourne rock band JET said venues of this size give bands room to grow, while The Temper Trap’s Toby Dundas welcomed the prospect of another live music space opening in his neighbourhood. Pretty solid plaudits, if you ask us.
And the huge new live music spot isn’t the only project in the works. The venue is part of the first stage of Arden Central: a major new neighbourhood planned to bring together culture, entertainment, sport, education and nature. Once complete, the wider precinct is expected to include more than 5,400 homes for over 10,000 people, as well as retail and hospitality venues, community facilities and 5.5 hectares of open space. Live Nation joins the University of Melbourne and Melbourne Victory Football Club as precinct partners, alongside North Melbourne Football Club.
There’s no word yet on an opening date or which artists will perform at the new venue, so we’ll have to wait a little longer to see what lands on the gig calendar. But with more than 100 events expected annually, it could be a pretty major addition to the scene.
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