Fresh hope for Dudley Hippodrome after zoo bosses offer car park lifeline
Bosses at Dudley Zoo today said for the first time that they would consider allowing non patrons to use their car park - giving fresh hope to the stalled redevelopment of Dudley Hippodrome.
The future of the Hippodrome has been left in the balance after The Rok Group withdrew its £8 million bid to take over the Castle Hill theatre.
The company said the breakdown in talks earlier in April was partly due to failing to reach agreement over the use of the car park behind the Hippodrome which is owned by Dudley Zoo.
But today the zoo said it was open for discussions on the use of its car park.
A crunch meeting is taking place on June 20 at Dudley Council House over the ongoing saga of the Hippodrome.
Members of Dudley's Ukip group called the extraordinary meeting, with the party keen to examine problems which scuppered the deal by The Rok Group.
Ukip Councillor Dean Perks said it was vital that members representing the borough did everything they could to try and save the historic building after a deal to redevelop it collapsed.
Councillor Perks said: "It appears to me there is no great will from the council to save the building.
"We need to question the relevant people at the council and see if there is any way around the parking issue.
"Everything is positive for it, the Hippodrome has massive potential and we should do everything we can to get it reopened."
Dudley Zoo director Derek Grove said: "The zoo has welcomed discussions regarding the use of the zoo's car park but now faces criticism for not agreeing to terms which are impractical and would leave some of our customers with nowhere to park.
"On several occasions this year, we have run out of space on our car park and as the weather improves we would expect this to continue, especially on weekends and during school holidays.
"This is without the additional vehicles that would be attracted to the Hippodrome.
"As far as I am aware the zoo's position has remained open and consistent and we are happy to discuss use of the car park as long as it will not cause damage to our business by preventing use by our own visitors."
Patrons from the nearby JB's nightclub used to use the car park when the venue was a thriving rock club.
But new fencing has been installed in the intervening years and it has been used primarily zoo visitors.
