Mayor Marvin Rees may have given the clearest indication yet that he will reject Temple Meads as the site for Bristol’s arena, in favour of YTL’s Filton location.
The issue was discussed at full council on Tuesday 20th March when the Mayor and councillors were presented with a petition signed by over 5,000 people, together with more than 100 written statements from members of the public, in favour of the Temple Meads site.
There was an opportunity for further debate when the Green party submitted a motion (Green_Group_Motion_1_-_Bristol_Arena.pdf) in favour of the Temple Meads site. The motion was carried: 34 councillors voted in favour (17 Labour, 10 Green, 7 Liberal Democrat); 12 voted against, including the Mayor (12 Labour); and there were 17 abstentions (11 Conservative, 6 Labour). When the result was announced the Mayor was heard to say “Ridiculous” (20th March BCC Full Council webcast, at 3 hours 23 mins).
In his blog the next day, Mayor Marvin Rees stated the decision has not been made yet, but it may be significant that his blog referred to ‘Temple Island’ rather than ‘Arena Island’ …