Dome builders join arena site fight

THE two builders of the Millennium Dome are vying with each other to return to the Greenwich peninsula and build a £100m sports and entertainment centre on the site.

Laing O'Rourke and Sir Robert McAlpine - which formed a joint venture to build the Dome in 1997 - will compete against each other for the deal from entertainment giant Anschutz Entertainment Group Europe (AEGE), according to Construction News.

Multiplex, the Australian firm building the new national stadium at Wembley, will complete the heavyweight line-up.

The Dome Arena is a key feature of the masterplan for the £4bn regeneration of the Greenwich peninsula put together by architect Terry Farrell.

The arena will contain 22,000 seats and the developer hopes it will stage up to 200 events a year when opened in 2005. It will have its own roof under the main Dome's canopy in order to suppress the noise of rock concerts. It will also host family shows, sports events, award shows and conventions.

The bidders have signed confidentiality agreements with AEGE but a source at one contractor told Construction News: 'We have all had teams working on this since around April with the client, looking at drawings and designs. We've been paying particular attention to the acoustics and keeping the sound in. But things are beginning to speed up now and they are preparing to tender the project.'

It is understood that AEGE will send out bid documents to the three rivals in November, and construction work is to begin in mid-2004.

A joint venture between regeneration agency English Partnerships, owner of the Dome land, the property consortium Meridian Delta and AEGE submitted a planning application to Greenwich Borough Council last December.

The consortium hopes that the overall master plan could bring 24,000 jobs to the area. The development follows news earlier in the week that property group London & Regional plans a £400m development on a £50m site next to the Dome.