Fundraiser launched to help relocate Leeds community venue The Imaginarium
The team behind the space claim an anonymous tip-off reported The Imaginarium for a "planning breach", forcing them to close last week
A fundraiser has been launched to support the team behind The Imaginarium after Leeds-based community arts venue announced its sudden closure last week.
In a statement posted via Instagram last week (July 22), The Imaginarium confirmed that it would cease operations in its current location close to Leeds city centre.
"We will also be moving to a new space - but that is unlikely to be for several months - we are aiming for early 2026," the statement reads. "It is a huge headache and quite heartbreaking to have to go through this, and it has scuppered a lot of our plans for this year."
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A GoFundMe has been launched to support The Imaginarium's relocation to a new space, as well as legal costs and funds to help them refit an alternative venue should it not be fit for purpose.
Alongside the fundraiser, a statement from The Imaginarium claims that the venue had been "anonymously reported for a planning breach", something it says is "baffling" due to the team having informed its landlords of plans for the building's use and the fact it had acquired a 4:AM license from Leeds City Council to host "live music, DJs and operate as a nightclub".
"This was a long while ago, and everything has been fine, and then this week we had a letter from the person in the council planning department who had originally contacted us starting the whole thing again," the statement continues.
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"Basically, we have 14 days to either cease operating or restart the process we went through last year. So sadly, we will not be operating as a venue at Church Walk after the end of July".
"If we were to continue, we would have to begin the process of trying to fight this, and it will be at huge cost to ourselves, and we are unlikely to come out of it with the result we want."
You can donate to The Imaginarium's GoFundMe here.
Megan Townsend is Mixmag's Deputy Editor, follow her on Twitter