8:34pm Monday 8th February 2010
By Emma Streatfield
WORK is under way to give a former bingo hall a new lease of life.
Contractors moved into the former Mecca bingo hall in Regent Circus yesterday to begin removing asbestos from the building.
It is set to re-open as a venue for live music in late summer.
Coun Phil Young, the cabinet member for culture, regeneration and economic development, said: “This is part of our plans for getting the building ready.
“Clearly this is one of the key actions we had to take to make it safe. It’s great to see it happening.”
Coun Young confirmed that the council had agreed terms with an unconfirmed backer to turn it into a live music venue.
The asbestos removal should be finished by March or April, allowing the refurbishment and design work to begin.
The premises, originally a cinema, closed its doors in April 2008.
Asbestos was once commonly used in buildings because of its fireproofing and other properties.
But it can cause four serious diseases: mesothelioma, asbestos-related lung cancer, asbestosis and pleural thickening, all of which can be fatal. They usually affect workers who handled the substance before the risks associated with the substance were known.
Coun Young said while the venue was safe to use as a bingo hall, the vibrations created by live music meant that asbestos had to be removed.
A council spokesman added: “Contractors have started work to remove asbestos from the former Mecca bingo hall so that it’s in a fit state to be offered to any new users who might be interested in it.
“Whatever the building is used for in the future, work to alter the interior would involve disturbing the asbestos, so it makes sense to remove it now so that it’s more attractive to the market.”
Coun Young said when finished, the venue would cater to a market which was previously unfilled in Swindon.
While the town’s other live music venues the 12 Bar and the Old Vic can hold 100 people and the Oasis Leisure Centre more than 1,000, the Mecca bingo site would occupy the middle ground.
Coun Young said it would allow Swindon to attract artists before they made it to the top.
He said: “It adds another dimension to the kind of music that Swindon can put on.”
Coun Young said he understood there had been significant interest already from artists.
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