Council writes off £51k debt after collapse of concert promoter
The promoter brought huge acts to Colwyn Bay for more than a decade as part of the Access All Eirias programme of events. From Sir Tom Jones to Sir Elton John, Paloma Faith to Noel Gallagher, the gigs had brought thousands to the seaside town's Parc Eirias stadium, bolstering the local economy. Sign up for the North Wales Live newsletter sent twice daily to your inbox.
The venue is owned by Conwy County Borough Council. Orchard Live Ltd went into voluntary liquidation and an official winding up of the business began on September 21, 2023.
It had left the council out of pocket for an outstanding sundry invoice.
At the council's cabinet meeting on Tuesday (August 12), members were told the council had "exhausted all available routes to recover this debt" and agreed to write it off.
The money owed had concerned room hire, kitchen hire and bar concession provided to Orchard Live Limited between July 21 to 23, 2023, totalling £51,186.67, including VAT.
It was possible that the council could still receive some money back, but it was not guaranteed and could take years.
Since the incident, the council had tightened its invoicing, meaning they were now sent out after 14 days, not 50.
Cllr Dilwyn Owain Roberts said officers had "done everything they could" to recover the cash, and thanked them for their "hard work" saying it was "not their fault".
He also added that it was possible that some money could still come back, and they could possibly look at retrieving £2,000 of VAT.
Cllr Mike Priestley said it was "disappointing" that the company had gone into liquidation and that it "created memories by bringing in superstars and hundreds of thousands of pounds" to the town since 2012.
The events had boosted local businesses, given the area "a buzz" and had put Conwy County Borough Council "on the map," he said.
He said: "We have had the likes of Olly Murs, Sir Tom Jones, Sir Elton John, Lionel Richie, Bryan Adams, Paloma Faith.
"We have had Noel Gallagher, and if you look at what is going on with Oasis at the moment. We attracted them to Colwyn Bay, along with names like Simply Red, although he had upset some people about holiday homes.
"I know it is unfortunate what happened, businesses do go into liquidation every day. It is a negative but let's look at the bigger picture for Colwyn Bay.
"It's sad to see that this has happened, yes it is a considerable amount of money, yes we need to learn lessons, but let's not let that stop Conwy from putting on events in the future."
Cllr Roberts said that meetings with officers and interested parties were underway over the venue's future, adding: "We're already looking at what we can bring in the future."
Cllr Nigel Smith added it had been "a successful partnership" which had "bolstered" the economy of Conwy.
"It brought cultural events to our residents that had never been seen before," he said.
"Sadly, it comes with a bitter taste at the end, but we shouldn't let that spoil what came before. It's a bit sad but I am very pleased we are looking to continue.
"It would be great to have some major acts back at Eirias. It's a fantastic facility that gives our residents the opportunity to see big acts without having to travel outside of Wales to the big cities like Manchester and Birmingham."
Cllr David Carr added: "Some of the events were brilliant, we need to put events on like those again... we need to get over this and get events on again."
Council leader Cllr Charlie McCoubrey said it had been a "fruitful relationship" from 2012 onwards, but that after Covid, a lot of things had changed.
"There were lots of memories, lots of economic benefits to the area," he said.
"We just need to make sure that any contracts we take now are fit for 2025/26 not what we would have done in 2012."
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