LONDON (CelebrityAccess) — A petition to keep London’s historic Brixton Academy has been signed by almost 50,000 music fans.
The change.org petition calls for the iconic venue, which has hosted live music since 1986, to remain open and part of the city’s nightlife.
“I personally have been to hundreds of gigs in my lifetime, many of them here and I have never once felt like safety was an issue!” Stuart O’Brien, who launched the petition stated in the description. He adds that the venue’s closure “would also have a devastating effect on the local economy”.
The venue, a former movie cinema turned concert venue, has been closed since December when a crowd crush outside of a concert by Afrobeats star, Asake left two people dead and one person critically injured.
Following the tragic incident, the venue had its license suspended for three months by Lambeth’s council while local authorities conducted a review.
On April 14th, London’s Metropolitan Police announced they will be seeking a revocation of the Brixton Academy’s venue license with the matter to be considered by Lambeth’s council yet-to-be-confirmed date.
According to The Guardian, Metropolitan Police and Security Industry Authority (SIA) also launched an investigation into allegations of corruption at the venue following investigative journalism by the BBC that alleged that some members of the venue’s security staff would let people into the venue in echange for money.
A spokeperson for the venue’s operator, Academy Music Group, said the company has complied with the council and Metropolitan Police during the inquiry.
“We have had regular meetings and discussions with the Metropolitan police and Lambeth council at which we have presented detailed proposals that we believe will enable the venue to reopen safely,” the spokesporson told The Guardian.
