LONDON (CelebrityAccess MediaWire) — A large and popular London nightclub has been shuttered in order to make way for a new railroad station and the club's directors have asked for a judicial review of the matter.
Cable, a 1,300-capacity club that played host to some of the world's best known DJs, was forced to close as a part of the redevelopment of London Bridge station, which is above the venue. Planned upgrades include a large, emergency stairwell that will lead directly to the current dance floor of the club.
Cable director Euan Johnston told the London Evening Standard that club management had an agreement with Network Rail, which operates most of the railroad system in the UK, that the club could be long-term tenants if the refurbed the space the club currently occupies. According to Johnston, the club spent millions of pounds on the venue, refurbishing it from “derelict, leaking and uninhabitable arches.”
“We were assured when we moved in that we would not be affected by the redevelopment and Network Rail have simply changed their minds — the worst thing is there is nothing we can do to prevent it. We have invested a huge amount of time and energy developing the space and growing Cable as a brand, not to mention employing 70 staff who now face redundancy,” Johnston told the London Evening Standard.
However, Network Rail maintains that tenants were informed of the project in April 2011 and that plans for the redevelopment have been in publicly available.
Network Rail also told the Evening Standard that they were working with the venue's owners to find an alternate site for the club. – CelebrityAccess Staff Writers