Live-arts innovation in downtown London is entering a new phase as a venerable retailer moves out to make room for an ambitious commercial music venture, The Free Press has learned.
Mike Manuel, owner of the London Music Hall on Dundas St., is buying the adjacent building that for nearly 100 years has been home to Nash Jewellers — and plans to turn it into a multi-use music incubator.
Details will be announced at a news conference Tuesday.
It’s a merger of business and arts — with some government co-operation rolled in — that harkens to a new model for downtown revival, Manuel believes.
“The retail aspect (of downtown) is something of the past,” said Manuel, whose recent $1.5-million renovation turned the Music Hall into what some call the best live-music venue in London’s history.
“Retail is not going to come back downtown. (Instead) we’ve got arts, music, restaurants, residences and offices.”
Of live shows at sites such as Bud Gardens, the Grand Theatre or his own venue, Manuel simply says: “You see life.”
But the beginning of his London Music Division also marks the end for Nash Jewellers on Dundas, a business set to mark its 100th anniversary in 2018.
By mid-2016, the business will be gone from the core after 98 years, merging with its north-end store at a new spot, the southeast corner of the Oxford St.-Wonderland Rd. intersection.
“It’s not something we took lightly or did quickly,” said Colin Nash, the fourth generation of the family to run the business. “Knowing Mike’s moving in here, retaining our heritage and culture is amazing. We couldn’t ask for a better blessing than this.”
Nash echoes Manuel’s view on the evolution of a downtown as a hub for arts and culture: “It’s a much more natural fit than a high-end retailer.”
So, what’s planned for the London Music Division?
The building will be privately owned by Manuel, but what goes in it will be a co-operative effort between him, city hall, Tourism London and Downtown London, the merchants’ association.
Though the vision is still taking shape, one official sees a music incubator, hall of fame for local musicians and a performance space as possible components.
“(It fits) the aspirations of downtown and where we see it evolving,” said Chris Campbell, Tourism London’s director of culture and entertainment. “I see it becoming more of a centre for entertainment, music tourism.
“Arts and culture tourism represents a tremendous opportunity for growth for London.”
A rapid-transit proposal that would take buses off Dundas St. and a plan to turn a section of Dundas into a vehicle-optional “flex street” fit with a greater push for arts, Campbell added.
“It all fits together.”
patrick.maloney@sunmedia.ca
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