Marine Lake Events Centre, Southport - Operator Procurement

The Council is seeking to procure an experienced and qualified operator to manage the future Marine Lake Events Centre, to be developed by the Council.

The Council’s preferred deal structure is a long-term lease arrangement. This is an exciting opportunity for an organisation to partner with the Council. The vision for the project is as follows: “To transform the MLEC into a high quality, distinctive entertainment and business events venue capable of providing exceptional experiences to audiences and users. It will be an anchor for the Waterfront redevelopment, retaining and attracting visitors and driving economic impact for Southport”.

The Council is seeking to:

• Procure a long-term operating partner (25 years to a maximum of 40 years)
• Engage an operator to contribute to the design process, venue fit-out and then the long-term operation of the facility
• Secure an operator on a Fully Repairing and Insuring (FRI) lease basis if possible-this is the target though the Council will consider alternatives
• Secure an operating partner for the MLEC and potentially wider facilities on site.

Please Note: Any documentation associated with the tender which is made available at SQ stage is in draft form therefore is subject to change when it comes to final publication at Dialogue stage. Please also note that the estimated contract value is based on the venue turnover across the maximum contract term.