Building site video: Work starts at last on landmark Leeds Arena

Excavation work is now complete and around 50 construction workers from BAM, the company signed up to build the arena, are moving onto the site at Clay Pit Lane in the city centre.

Over the next couple of months the public will see the arena take shape as the foundations are laid and part of the arena’s structure begins to go up.

A visitor centre will also be set up soon, giving the public the chance to monitor progress, of the project which is due to open in 2013.

Coun Richard Lewis, Leeds City Council’s member for development, said last night: “We are entering an exciting phase in the arena project and we want to involve local people as much as possible so they can feel a part of it and share the benefits of this scheme.

“We know that the arena will boost the city’s economy by £25.5m a year but we also want to use it as a catalyst to create real opportunities for those people who live in the areas surrounding it and for the city’s local construction industry,” Coun Lewis added.

The controversial scheme has sparked a bitter rivalry with the well-established Sheffield Arena. But many in Leeds say the lack of a similar facility has held the city back as an entertainment venue.