The Factory: Covid-19 and 'unique design' sees Manchester venue cost rise

The cost of a new Manchester arts venue has increased by £45m because of Covid-19 and the building's "unprecedented nature", the city's council has said.

The authority said The Factory, which is being built on the site of the former Granada TV studios, will now cost £186m and open in December 2022.

The building was originally costed at £110m and set to open by 2019.

A council spokesman said the extra money would be raised through fundraising and national funding.

The council had previously hoped the 5,000-capacity venue, which is being built to host dance, theatre and music shows, would play a part in the 2021 Manchester International Festival.

The council spokesman said social distancing measures had slowed down construction and the building's "unique and specialist design" had also contributed to the rise in costs.

He said that when completed, it was hoped it would attract about 850,000 visitors annually.

He added that the council's own financial input into the project had not changed and would remain at £50.6m, with the remainder of the money coming through £85m of "already secured" national funding and other funding sources.

Council leader Sir Richard Leese said delivering something as "unique and game-changing" as The Factory was "always going to involve some unforeseen challenges, and as these go, the global Covid-19 pandemic is pretty monumental".

He said the financial impact of the crisis meant the council could not contribute any more funds to the project "but, as is the Manchester way, we will be resourceful and find other ways to ensure we create something special".

He said the building would have "enormous benefits" for the city, adding that the pandemic's challenges made it "even more important than ever that we deliver it".

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