News Archive
SCARBOROUGH HOTEL GUESTS COULD SOON BE ENTERTAINED BY MULTIPLEX CINEMA
30th Jun 2008
Guests staying at Scarborough hotels, will soon be able to enjoy a new multiplex cinema in the centre of Scarborough, as plans have taken a step nearer to reality.
Members of Scarborough Council’s planning and development committee have given the thumbs up to an outline planning application to provide a multiplex cinema and another Scarborough hotel on the site of the North Street car park in Scarborough, North Yorkshire.
The development will also include shops and restaurants plus an underground car park with 79 spaces.
But an archaeological dig will first have to will be carried out on the Yorkshire site the committee heard that Roman-British, Anglo-Saxon or medieval remains still exist below ground.
They point out that Scarborough enjoys 3.99 million day visitors and 1.47 million overnight visitors to hotels in Scarborough a year.
A report by Jill Low, the council’s development manager, told the Scarborough Evening News: “This market, they believe, has yet to be tapped. They also believe that there is considerable potential for further trade because of people’s tendency to make linked visits such as visiting a cinema and then a restaurant.
The nearest multiplex cinemas are Bridlington, York and Middles-brough.
Mrs Low also said: “The applicants talk about clawing back cinema trade which they believe has leaked out to these more attractive, in terms of facilities, destinations.”
A Scarborough Retail Study also identified an unmet potential capacity for more shops by 2011.
Official guidelines recommended Scarborough town centre locations for hotels because they were the most sustainable in planning terms and allowed greater access by public transport as well as allowing visitors easy access to the facilities and attractions.
Scarborough & District Civic Society said it supported the principle of a multi-screen cinema and retail centre but they were concerned about the design and setting of the adjoining buildings.
The Urban Space Group, which is part of the Urban Renaissance pro-ject, also backed the development but were concerned about the height and mass of the building.
Some councillors wanted the exit of the car park to be in a different position from the entrance but planning officials said that while they had looked at this it was not possible.
The outline permission was granted by a majority of 10 to three.
