The Mancunian Way: 'It can only be good for business'
manchestereveningnews.co.ukThe opening of Co-op Live might have been plunged into chaos, leaving thousands of disappointed music fans in its wake. But pub landlords near the new arena hope that - when it's finally up-and-running - the £365m venue will provide a welcome boost to trade.
With more than 23,000 people set to pack out Co-op Live several nights a week, local boozers in nearby Beswick and Bradford are hoping gig-goers will pop in for a few pints before the show.
And with drinks prices a fraction of what's being charged inside, they'll be saving a few quid if they do. "It can only be good for business - I can't see it not being good," said Tony Carroll, long-serving landlord of The Townley on Albert Street in Beswick. "If we get 100 people in and they all spend a fiver that's £500 that we wouldn't normally have.
If we get 10 people in it's 10 customers we wouldn’t normally have.” Tony has run The Townley for 27 years and says the arena's opening is just the latest step in the remarkable transformation of this once run-down and neglected corner of east Manchester. "Thirty years ago nobody wanted to know east Manchester - look at it now," he said. "Houses are going for £300k. "Back then you could have bought the whole of Beswick for £300k.
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