He added: "Free parking would encourage visitors to park by the Market Place, walk through the Market Hall, to Derbion via East Street. ‌The car park closed in September 2024, after being deemed "surplus to the requirements" for city centre parking by the council. The Assembly Rooms car park was the scene of a fire in the plant room on its roof in 2014. But while the car park reopened and did not close until late 2024, the Assembly Rooms has remained closed for 12 years. “A parking review undertaken in 2022 identified that the Assembly Rooms car park is a surplus to the requirements for city centre parking.