Agenda item - Public Involvement

To consider the following matters raised by members of the public:

(a)      Petitions: to receive any petitions presented by members of the public to the full Council or at the meeting itself

(b)      Written Questions: to receive any questions submitted by the due date of 12 noon on the 12 July 2019;

(i)            I360 – Mr J Deans

(c)      Deputations: to receive any deputations submitted by the due date of 12 noon on the 12 July 2019.

23          Public Involvement

23(a)  Petitions

23.1    There were none

23(b)  Written Questions

23.2    One question was received.

            Mr J Deans asked the following question:

I have been following the financial crisis reported on the i360, is it time to think about a rescue plan before administrators step in leaving egg on the face of the council. What is the true cost to the city in loans and any other investment in it. Is the council prepared to listen to a genuine plan.

The Chair gave the following response:

This committee has received a number of reports about the performance of the i360, including one on the agenda of this Meeting.  As has been set out in those reports, the city council is considering a number of options about how to work with the Board of the i360 to best protect its investment of public money and ensure that the attraction continues to drive visitor numbers to the city. 

In previous reports we have set clear indicators as to what we expect from the attraction, and as today’s report shows there are early signs that these are being met, but it will need an entire summer season to tell what impact that is having.  Officers will return in the Autumn with a more detailed report on how to best restructure the loan to the i360 to ensure the public purse is protected.

23.3    Mr J Deans asked the following supplementary:

There are two billion trekkies in the world, that is fans of Start Trek for those not in the know. This year Birmingham hosted a weekend of Star Trek with a sell-out exhibition, with people paying hundreds, if not thousands to walk around dressed as Klingons or Commanders. I would be happy to pursue a recovery plan for the i360 and approach contracts within Viacom purely to explore the possibilities of turning the i360 into a proper themed attraction.

The Executive Director Economy Environment & Culture gave the following response:

There’s no doubt that themed attractions are in trend and I’d be happy to speak to the i360 to see whether themed events could be a part of their attraction.

23(c)   Deputations

23.4    There were none.