Tuesday 19 June 2007

Arrowcroft's Dead Parrot

Arrowcroft would have people believe that their newly revised plans for the arena, that now include a building for the Warehouse Theatre, show that they are listening to public concerns and that the arena project is alive and well.

The reality is somewhat different.

The Croydon Guardian quote Ted Craig, artistic director and chief executive of the Warehouse, who said that Arrowcroft had not contacted them about the new plans.

Quote:

"The site they have given us is not a prominent location like they have claimed, it is stuck in a corner behind the huge arena.

We have had no consultation at all with Arrowcroft and this is shown in what they have designed. They have given us a 245-seat theatre but have made no provision for dressing rooms or rehearsal rooms.

Our biggest problem is that as far as we know this work will take at the very least three years to build if ever and in that time we will have to be pulled down while the new theatre is being built. That is of course our absolute vital concern.

As it stands at the moment we are in the advanced stages of designing a new Warehouse Theatre with Stanhope and we have had a good deal of involvement in designing a theatre that we are very excited about
."

Does this sound like Arrowcroft have really listened to the citizens of Croydon, or the management of the Warehouse Theatre?

Does this sound like Arrowcroft really care about the views of the people of Croydon?

I think not!

Arrowcroft's last minute PR bid resembles Michael Palin's character's pleas, in the Monty Python "Dead Parrot" sketch.

They are desperately trying to convince everyone that the arena is a living breathing project.

The reality is that it has long since passed away.

Time to put this nonsense out of our misery once and for all, and get on with developing the site.

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