As Brisbanites are forced to grow accustomed to living under the newly enforced lockout laws, the city’s live music scene is bracing itself for some big changes. Many fear that the destruction wrought on Sydney’s nightlife is about to metastasise.
But one venue that we’ve been assured isn’t going anywhere is the city’s iconic Tivoli theatre. After months of concerns that the building could be demolished and redeveloped, it was saved and will continue to operate as a live music venue.
As the Courier Mail reports, late last year entrepreneur Steven Sleswick sold his residential property management business, right as the Tivoli came back on the market. A longtime fan of the venue, Sleswick decided it was the right time to “have a crack at it”.
“The venue itself is a pretty special place,” Sleswick told the Courier Mail. “I don’t think you can really put a price on it – it’s not replaceable. From our perspective there was a lot of motivation not to lose a piece of history and an iconic venue.”
“But we wouldn’t have paid the price if it wasn’t commercially viable.” This week saw Sleswick hand over a sum of $8.35 million for the venue, which in the past has hosted performances from the likes of Tame Impala, Wilco, Ryan Adams, and even Bob Dylan.
“Over the years we’ve sat down on many a night and over a beer or two talked about how great it would be to run the Tiv,” said Sleswick, who will run the venue with his brother Dave, a former Brisbane Powerhouse producer, and events caterer Jerome Dalton.
According to Michael Gard of Cushman & Wakefield, who was part of a team of marketing agents working on the Tivoli, whilst several developers did express interest in the venue, most of the offers received came from those interested in capitalising on its value as a venue.
