Drug sniffer dogs may be used at planned Cardiff venue

Splott Warehouse will be converted into a live music venue

Sniffer dogs may have to be used at a planned new Cardiff music venue after police concerns over potential drug use.

Live Nation (Music) UK wants to open Titan Warehouse in Splott with a capacity for 10,000 revellers.

But as part of the venue's licensing conditions, club owners have agreed to a "robust" entry and search policy that may include drug detecting dogs.

Live Nation says it operates a "zero tolerance policy" towards drugs.

Cardiff council has now approved the licensing application accepting all the conditions requested by South Wales Police as well as imposing its own restrictions on noise.

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Other conditions agreed by Live Nation include the metal detectors for door staff to check for concealed weapons and that food would be available to all patrons for the full duration of each event.

Police sniffer dogs in operation in Cardiff city centre during the 2017 Champions League Final

The warehouse will stage plays, films, live music, recorded music, dance and entertainment.

There will be a maximum of 10 events, plus New Year's Eve, each year.

Live Nation - part of the Hollywood-based Live Nation entertainment group - organises festivals such as Reading and Leeds, Download and Wireless.

Sam Bush, president of UK touring at Live Nation at He said: "There's a huge demand in the area for music and we want to find a way to satisfy the demand.

"We're trying to bring a variety of music to the area. This is the first step and we want to achieve that by doing things the right way."

Cardiff council leader and Splott member Huw Thomas backed the application.

But local residents and businesses objected over concerns about noise and safety.