LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — It has almost been two weeks since Sphere officially opened in Las Vegas.
The venue has gotten rave reviews from many. But while it fits in with the skyline, neon, and atmosphere of the Entertainment Capital Of The World, it might not be a fit for other cities.
During a company earnings call in August, Sphere Executive Chairman and CEO James Dolan said company officials were looking at adding more Sphere venues around the world.
"Sphere is brand new, never-before-seen media and we believe it will take the world by storm," Dolan said at the time. "We've designed the Sphere product for other marketplaces that go as low as 2,500 seats and has a construction period of less than two years."
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Right now, London is the next city company officials are looking at. However, the proposed venue is facing pushback.
The project gained planning approval in March 2022 from the London Legacy Development Corporation. That was conditional on reaching an agreement for a five-year review of the building's advertising display. However, earlier this year, plans were temporarily put on hold by Michael Gove, Secretary of State at the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.
The proposed London Sphere would be located in the Stratford neighborhood in East London, near the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, which was used during the 2012 Summer Olympics. According to the company, the Sphere would be nearly 300 feet high and almost 400 feet wide. For context, that's nearly as tall as Big Ben.
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Several groups have voiced concerns including the Anschutz Entertainment Group, AEG, which operates the O2 Arena in southeast London. In a previous statement, the company said they're concerned the Sphere would be built too close to other entertainment venues including the O2, London Stadium, and Copper Box.
As for people who live in the neighborhood, a petition for the project to be scrapped has received more than 2,000 signatures. According to the Stop The MSG Sphere London group, local transportation will be "crippled" by the venue, the Sphere would have "severe implications on air pollution, quality of life, environmental damage, unacceptable levels of increased CO2 emissions and increased crime and anti-social behavior."
"The Sphere is designed for Vegas, the city of lights. It is not designed for a small site that is surrounded with three blocks of residential properties," group spokesperson Lindesay Mace told The Daily Telegraph. "Developers are insulting residents by offering black-out blinds. Some of our group live directly opposite it."
That includes people like Jane Earle, a retired teacher who lives in Newham and is also a member of the Stop MSG Sphere London group. She said many residents will have their London skyline views replaced with "advertising screens" and they were insulted by the black-out blinds proposal.
"So this vast organization is offering something that we used during the Blitz in the 1940s, to shield some of the effects of this high-tech vanity project," Earle told The Daily Mail. "As soon as the name of Madison Square Garden appeared in connection with the development, along with a sense of what it was going to be, I immediately felt enraged."
However, supporters said the project will also include building a nightclub, bars, and restaurants, which will boost the local economy by billions of dollars a year.
According to MSG Sphere London officials, they did conduct a poll in the summer of 2019 and asked over 1,000 residents who live in the 20 wards in Newham what they thought. The company said 85% of those polled said Sphere would be a good idea because it will create and support jobs and bring investments into the London economy.
As for next steps, proposals for the $975 million London Spehere have yet to be approved by Gove or Sadiq Khan, the Mayor Of London.
According to a statement from Khan's office, "This is a live application that will be referred back to the mayor. We cannot comment in advance of any decision he may make."
There is no timeline on when Gove or Khan could rule on the matter.
