James Lindsay has confirmed that Austrian property development company Immovate “has invested in the RVT”.
But Immovate, which specialises in residential and commercial renovations of historic properties, refuses to discuss its plans for one of London’s oldest and most iconic LGBTQ venues.
Lindsay bought the Royal Vauxhall Tavern in 2005 in partnership with Paul Oxley. In September, Lindsay announced that the RVT “has been sold” but declined to name the buyer. Following speculation last week about Immovate’s involvement, he told me in a statement:
“I am pleased to say that Immovate has invested in the RVT, which remains an important part of LGBT community. We are now focused on working to secure the RVT’s future and hope to see friends old and new in the coming weeks.”
Key questions remain unanswered about the progress of the property’s sale and the new owners’ plans for its future. But despite repeated requests over the past week, Immovate declined to comment directly.
Last month, Lindsay reported that he would be responsible for running the RVT, a pub that has been home to LGBT performance since at least the 1950s, under a five-year agreement with its new owners. If after that period it had not been “made into a viable business”, he suggested, its future would be uncertain.
These are the questions I put to Immovate regarding the sale of the RVT:
1. Is Immovate the sole buyer or are others involved? If there are others, who are they?
2. Has the sale been completed?
3. Do you acknowledge and respect the history and culture of the RVT as a key site of performance, activism and sociability for London’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) community? Do you acknowledge that it remains a vital and dynamic site for performance, activism and sociability today?
4. Do you intend to maintain the RVT as an LGBTQ licensed venue offering regular weekly performances for the foreseeable future?
5. Is James Lindsay contracted to oversee operation of the RVT for the next five years on that basis?
6. Do you have any plans to develop the RVT for residential or commercial use unrelated to or incompatible with its use as an LGBTQ licensed venue offering regular performances?
7. What other short-term or long-term plans do you have for the property?
8. Do you intend to consult with the local community and patrons of the RVT with regard to any plans for the future of the property?
9. Would you consider an offer from a community group to buy a share of the property or the entire property?
Immovate declined to comment, nominating Lindsay to respond on its behalf. When asked for clarification on the questions above, Lindsay described his earlier two-line statement confirming Immovate’s investment as “a very comprehensive response which, to my mind, answers all your points”.
Whether or not that’s true, if the property has indeed been sold then its new owners themselves are the only people who can provide authoritative confirmation of their plans for its future.
The sale comes at a time when London pubs and performance venues are acutely vulnerable to high-end property redevelopment, and Vauxhall is one of the city’s most intensively reshaped areas.
A representative of Lambeth council’s planning department confirmed that there has been a significant increase this year in speculative enquiries about redeveloping the RVT site, though no formal applications for planning permission have been received.
This week it was confirmed that Shoreditch pub the Joiner’s Arms, a landmark of the east London gay scene, is to close in January (see here and here for two differing takes on its legacy). Another east London institution, music venue the George Tavern, is also under threat of redevelopment. According to the Lost Pubs Project, more than 3,400 London pubs have closed in recent years.
Until someone from Immovate answers the above questions on the record, those who care about the RVT’s history and future as an LGBTQ performance venue will have significant cause for concern.
Has the RVT been bought by an Austrian property developer?
Posted by Ben Walters at 11:38am on Friday November 7, 2014.
