Dome to become sports arena

Meridian Delta Ltd, the consortium backed by the American oil magnate Philip Anschutz, has been selected to take over the beleagured Millennium Dome.

The consortium, led by property companies Lend Lease and Quintain Estates, has been granted a 999-year lease for the Dome and 150 acres of adjoining land. Anshutz, the US billionare behind the Staples Center in Los Angeles, has backed the scheme to transform the Dome into a 20,000-seat arena for concerts and sporting events, surrounded by an urban entertainment complex. The rest of the land will be used for shops, offices and homes.

Meridian Delta beat two other shortlisted proposals to be granted preferred bidder status. The Welcome Trust planned to turn the Dome into a biotechnology centre, while shopping centre developer, Tops Estates, proposed a sports and entertainment academy with scuba diving and an artificial ski slope.

The Dome has stood empty since January. Plans to sell the Dome to Legacy were scrapped in February and the previous preferred bidder, the Japanese Bank Nomura, pulled out of a deal to buy the site in September 2000.