A
TOWN centre nightspot ordered to close following a suspected
shooting is to reopen soon.
That was the
assurance from Candu Entertainments, the owners of Liquid Rock,
which was originally set for a re-launch at the start of April
under a new name and with airport-style security barriers. But
the entrance door remains boarded up.
It is more than
four months since the Great George Street club was closed by the
council at the request of police after reports that a reveller
had been shot during a brawl.
A Salford man was
later admitted to hospital with a bullet wound in his buttock.
Details of the
re-branding are still being kept under wraps, but a spokeswoman
for Oxford-based Candu Entertainments said: “We are planning to
re-open the venue soon.”
Liquid Rock was
one of the first pubs and clubs to be shut under the new
licensing laws, which give councils the same power as
magistrates.
At about the same
time, councillors decided to shut the King’s Arms on Langley
estate, Middleton, after five shots were fired inside.
Candu has
previously denied that any shooting took place at Liquid Rock.
In December, Phil
Woods, their regional operations manager, revealed that he had
been in talks with the police with a view to stepping up
security when the incident was said to have taken place.
At the time, he
said: “We have agreed to put a range of new procedures in place
which will include employing new staff and training existing
staff to a higher standard.
“We want to
improve the venue to make it a safe and secure place to have a
good night out.”
