Plans unveiled for £800,000,000 Las Vegas-style sphere in part of London

London could get its very own Las Vegas sphere but people living nearby are pretty unhappy about it.

The 300ft-high ‘Crystal Ball’ developed by MSG Sphere London, could be built in Stratford, east London, after it was approved by planning officials last year.

But the idea of free blackout blinds for people living nearby to mitigate light pollution from the thousands of LED screens that would cover it haven’t gone down well.

Objections to the development raised in 2019 included concerns about the venue casting a shadow over homes, increasing pollution and causing significant light pollution at night.

However supporters of the project say it will feature bars and restaurants, and will boost the capital’s economy by £2.5 billion.

The proposals for the £800 million 21,500 capacity arena are yet to be approved by the Mayor of London Sadiq Khan and Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove.

Fighting the plans are the campaign group Stop MSG Sphere London and a spokesperson for the group Lindesay Mace told the Daily Telegraph: ‘The fact that where we are now, on the permission being granted, is a travesty of justice.

‘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.

‘Developers are insulting residents by offering black out blinds… some of our group live directly opposite it.

‘One of our members, she lives 75 metres away, her windows all face opposite the site.

‘We are going to have massive glowing advertisements blaring [into our homes] from one of the biggest structures the UK and Europe has ever seen, it is just ridiculous.’

James Dolan, a US media mogul, is behind the project in Las Vegas and singer Bono described him as ‘mad b******’ following U2’s gig at the venue.

Mr Dolan told Variety the project in London is still very much going ahead and said: ‘That is definitely a big part of the business plan, to build more Spheres all over the world. 

‘And by the way, different-size ones too – probably not much bigger than the one in Vegas, but we’ve actually gone through already architectural drawings and designs for smaller Spheres for smaller markets.’

An MSG Sphere London spokesperson said: ‘We are pleased with the progress we are making. 

‘Sphere London will deliver many cultural and economic benefits, including creating thousands of jobs and generating billions of pounds for the local, London and UK economy.’

But Las Vegas residents like Billy Cline, 36, had words of warning for Stratford locals and said: ‘It’s almost like building a sun on Earth.’

A spokesperson for Sadiq Khan said: ‘As this is a live application that will be referred back to the mayor, we cannot comment in advance of any decision he may make.’

In the past West Ham MP Lyn Brown has called the proposed scheme a ‘monstrosity’.

There is understood to be a ‘break clause’ every five years that would be subject to feedback from local residents.

More than 1,000 residents formally objected to the planning permission and a petition for the project to be scrapped received more than 2,000 signatures.

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