London's O2 Academy Brixton was shut down after two people were killed in crowd crush during Afrobeats singer Asake show on December 15, 2022.
Last April, a petition simply titled Save Brixton Academy was launched on Change.org, and as the title implied it was an effort to save the iconic venue from permanent oblivion. The petition came in the wake of the Metropolitan Police asking the Lambeth Council to permanently shut the venue down, as they stated at the time that they have "lost confidence in the premises licence holder" and that AMG has "not been successful in identifying the remedial measures which need to be in place before the Academy can safely re-open."
Now after a five day hearing, the local Lambeth Council has announced O2 Academy Brixton will be allowed to re-open its doors, but according to Louder, not before it meets a rigorous set of 77 conditions aimed at strengthening and improving safety for anyone inside its walls.
"Over the past nine months the venue's importance to the local community and the live music scene in the UK has been made clear through first-hand professional testimony, campaigns, and petitions as well as economic assessments demonstrating the financial impact to the surrounding area caused by the closure," said the Academy Music Group in an statement thanking the Lambeth Council.
"Academy Music Group is determined to learn all appropriate lessons from the night of December 15, 2022. Working at a senior level with experts across all disciplines, AMG presented a comprehensive, multi-faceted response for the licensing authorities to support their case for the safe and secure reopening of the venue."
"We appreciate having had the opportunity to present these detailed proposals and revised license conditions at the hearing and we are very grateful they met with the approval of the Licensing Sub-Committee."
