Scarborough's Brunswick Centre is set to become a multi-screen cinema after planning permission was granted for a change of use.
Planning permission for the change of use was granted yesterday at the last ever meeting of Scarborough Borough Council's planning committee.
The plans would see the shopping centre become a cinema, leisure and retail centre which could include restaurants and bars.
There would also be remodelling of the outside of the building.
Pete Gleave spoke for the developer, Scarborough Group International, at yesterday's planning meeting and said the change of use will enable the Brunswick to adapt to changing demand.
The multi-million pound redevelopment plan has been put forward by leading property regeneration and placemaking specialist, Scarborough Group International (SGI), which acquired the centre in September 2021.
SGI says it is planning a major repositioning of the 1990’s-built shopping centre to create a new leisure-led destination, based around a modern, high-quality cinema. The proposals also anticipate a range of other leisure, food and beverage, and ancillary retail uses, all delivered within the existing building envelope.
The plans state that the cinema will take up to 2,700 sqm out of the centre’s almost 14,000 sqm of space.
The cinema is proposed to be in operation at the latest from 9am until 2am on Friday and Saturday nights, and until 11pm from Sunday to Thursday.
An operator for the cinema has not yet been announced, at which point the size of the cinema and number of screens are set to be decided.
SGI says it expects work to start by mid-2023, with the finished scheme open by Christmas 2024.
Councillor Sam Cross thinks the change of use for the Brunswick Centre is good news for Scarborough Town Centre.
A number of external alterations are also proposed on four sides of the building.
The developer has said that it will take advantage of the corners of the building as “beacons” to serve as “a wayfinding feature and encourage footfall”.
On the Westborough side, the plan proposes an area of aluminium wall cladding and an approximately 5.1 metre tall LED video wall display at the second storey facing the street.
The Somerset Terrace side would feature an illuminated ‘CINEMA’ sign above an entrance together with new glazed openings on the corner of Vernon Road, incorporating a balcony at the first-floor level.
The scheme would also see the re-configuration of the car parking arrangements with an increase in 40 spaces to 376.
Pete Gleave said the proposal will bring a number of benefits to local people and businesses.
Opened in July 1990, The Brunswick was once a thriving retail destination in the heart of Scarborough town centre. However, a shift in consumer shopping habits, exacerbated by the global pandemic, led to a dramatic decline in footfall and the loss of its anchor tenant, Debenhams.
Councillor Theresa Norton welcomes the redevelopment plan for the Brunswick and believes it will have a positive impact for other local businesses.
Councillor Bill Chatt thinks the change of use can only be good for the area
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