Writer and former DJ at the Hacienda Dave Haslam said smaller venues were an “important part of the fabric of towns and cities”.
“There will be more closures if action isn’t taken”, he added.
“A major arena could be anywhere, whereas smaller venues are very much part of what makes a city, they are part of excitement, part of the psyche of the city and we need ways to support them financially.”
The writer said the £1 donation in Eilish’s tickets shows a “levy is possible”.
“If they can do that for an artist, why not the local music infrastructure.”
Co-op Live representatives have previously said the venue was working on local initiatives to support grassroots music and would donate £1m to the Co-op Foundation charity to support a range of causes.