***AMAZING NEWS*** WE NOW HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO PURCHASE CLUB 85

It is 23 years since Bob took on the handshake agreement with Jas Lidder the owner and landlord, that gave us control of the function room at Club 85.

Since then we have built it into a successful Grassroots Music Venue.

• 3000+ shows

• At least 10,000 band performances

• Which means we’ve provided 40,000+ opportunities for musicians to play on this stage.

• Countless careers have started here, as well as the obvious Enter Shikari, James Bay, The Subways, Don Broco and so many more – there are the sound techs, lighting techs, and Industry Professionals for whom Club 85 was the first rung of the ladder into a career in the Music Industry.

• And of course, there’s all the Friendships and Relationships that have all been forged here and have stood the test of time, as we build a community around the venue.

• So many magical musical moments have occurred in this glorious barn, it’s a very special place.

It’s 9 months ago now that our landlord Jas dropped the bombshell that he intended to retire and was going to re-develop the site for flats and housing.

Giving us notice that we’d probably be out of here at the end of 2024.

He put in the application for planning permission, and we started to look around for a new home and how to make it happen.

It’s been an interesting learning curve, we’ve spent lots of time and energy looking at several alternative venues, particularly Plinston Hall in Letchworth.

They were either not suitable or they needed a huge amount of work and money spent on them to get them anywhere near to being road-worthy.

We have learned so much about business structures, Community Interest Companies, Buildings, Surveyors, Licensing, Governance etc we could probably write the book!

However, time was running out and at the same time Jas’s Planning Application isn’t looking quite as easy as he’d hoped either.

A few weeks ago, we called a meeting with Jas to discuss both our situations and I’m delighted to say that we now have the opportunity to buy the place, if we can raise the money to do so.

Yes this is great news but it’s also very scary, we have to raise in the region of £2 – £2.2m, that’s a lot of money especially for a Grassroots Music Venue like us.

With everyone’s support we can do this, we need the whole community on board.

• We are setting up as a new not-for-profit Community Interest Company to purchase and run the venue.

• We will be running crowdfunders and prize draws.

• We will be inviting Donations.

• We want to run a share sale – giving everyone the opportunity to invest in the future of Club 85.

• As a CIC we’ll be able to attract grants and match funding from a myriad of funding bodies.

• And of course, lots of Fundraising events.

There’s so much we can do to make the Grassroots Music Venue the centre of inclusive creativity our community deserves.

There will be lots more daytime use of the venue for classes, workshops, exhibitions, as a rehearsal space or for shooting videos.

The downstairs bar will become a quirky music bar/lounge, with sofas, a small stage, piano and congas!

There will be disabled toilet facilities on both levels and a lift, as well as events for people with extra needs, like special Sensory Sensitive Events that are quieter with static and soft lighting.

As a CIC we will be able to actively attract funding to bring a diverse programme of performances as well as for training future techs, promoters etc

Most importantly we will be a Beacon of Inclusivity in North Herts.

THE NEXT STEP.
 The Emergency Crowdfunder!

In the next few days, to get the ball rolling there will be a quick crowdfunder to raise the Battle Fund we need to cover Surveyors, Lawyers, Fees etc, a working capital for the new company and to help us through the transition.

• Follow Club 85 on all the social platforms.

• Like and share our posts.

• Jump on the Emergency Crowdfunder as soon as it goes live.

• Go to our website www.club-85.co.uk at the bottom of every page there’s a button to sign up for our newsletter, and also a paypal button for donations.

• Buy tickets and come to gig’s.

If you have any enquiries please use this email address: save@club-85.co.uk
If you would like to get involved/ volunteer with the club 85 team or have a music/ community based project you’d like to see at club 85 in the future then please use projects@club-85.co.uk

It’s a huge task, but it’s also an incredible opportunity to secure the future of Grassroots Live Music in our community for future generations.

LO

VE bob ;o))>