A multi-million-pound redevelopment of Scarborough's Brunswick Centre is expected to take a significant step forward on Friday as regional leaders prepare to approve crucial public funding.
A major new cinema, indoor leisure centre, and retail complex could be set to transform Scarborough's town centre and revive its struggling nighttime economy, if crucial public funding is approved on Friday.
The York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority is expected to sign off on the final element of public funding required to progress the stalled redevelopment of the Brunswick Centre at a meeting in the town on Friday morning.
Regional leaders are being asked to approve an initial £1 million grant to kickstart pre-construction and demolition work, while ringfencing a further £6 million for the main building phase.
The Brunswick Centre is currently in private ownership. The developer, Scarborough Group International, has approached the public sector to help bridge a £10.5 million viability gap caused by high construction costs and limited commercial rents in the area.
If Friday's funding is approved, the initial £1 million will be combined with money from North Yorkshire Council and the Pride in Place fund to support a £3 million pre-construction phase. This will allow the developer to submit a new planning application and carry out selective demolition to better understand the building's structure.
The ambitious project is a cornerstone of the town's Station to Shore Masterplan, designed to create a year-round destination that reduces reliance on seasonal tourism. It promises to deliver a significant economic boost, creating 414 direct permanent jobs and generating an estimated £10 million annually for the local economy.
Scarborough Councillor Janet Jefferson urged local people to keep faith with the redevelopment project as it moves towards this critical funding milestone.
She said:
"I think we've got to have faith in this. I read the due diligence two or three times. This is a reputable company that that we are dealing with.
And if you look at the things that's coming forward, I can only really think it's got to go ahead. Hopefully, everything will go forward with the cinema, the family focused indoor leisure which will give us a an indoor leisure centre when it's wet weather. It'll improve our night-time economy."
The town centre currently suffers from a lack of evening footfall, an issue the new mixed-use venue aims to solve by introducing food, hospitality, and entertainment options that stay open later.
Councillor Jefferson highlighted the stark reality of the current situation after dark.
"The night-time economy in Scarborough is very, very low. If you come out of the theatre, if you come off the train, you walk down the main street, there's nobody about. In fact, it can be quite frightening. I think we need more people in the town centre, especially on a night.
So I look forward to when we can announce the good news of the cinema operator and indeed the retailers, which will be good news for residents as well."
The intervention is part of a broader strategy under the newly established Scarborough Mayoral Development Zone. Despite attracting 3.9 million visitors in 2024 who generated £579.5 million for the local economy, Scarborough continues to face significant socio-economic challenges, with nineteen local areas ranked among the twenty percent most deprived in England.
To support the Brunswick Centre's revival, the Combined Authority is also being asked to ringfence £1 million for the Station Quarter Connectivity project. This scheme will deliver public realm and accessibility improvements along Westborough, York Place, Vernon Road, and Somerset Terrace, creating safer and more attractive walking routes between the railway station and the new leisure destination.
The construction phase of the Brunswick Centre alone is expected to support 112 direct jobs, providing a much-needed injection of investment and confidence into the Yorkshire Coast.
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