END FOR CINEMA?
HOUSING PLAN FOR LEISURE PARK
THE owners of South Bristol’s largest leisure park want to demolish it and build up to 350 new homes on the site.
The plan would see the Cineworld, Buzz Bingo and two restaurants at Hengrove Leisure Park knocked down and apartments and warehouses built instead.
The owners of the site, AEW UK Core Property Fund, said they would effectively create a new mini-suburb of Bristol on the vast leisure park, which would mean the only cinema in South Bristol being flattened.
The owners have submitted what is known as a “screening opinion” to Bristol City Council planners.
This is a preliminary request to ask planners how much information they would need to submit about environmental issues, ahead of a full planning application being submitted.
The application contains a map showing the area of the leisure park the London-based property company wants to develop, which does not include the McDonalds and KFC restaurants on the western side of the site, nor the Premier Inn and Brewer’s Fayre Wessex Flyer pub restaurant on the opposite side.
It also doesn’t appear to include the site of a proposed Costa Coffee drive through – plans for that were submitted just before the start of the coronavirus lockdown in March.
But the main bulk of the site, including the entire car park, the cinema, Buzz Bingo, and the Domino’s and Frankie & Benny’s in the middle of the site, are included, and will be demolished under the plans as they stand.
Writing to council planners to announce the intention, Craig O’Brien from Savills planning agents in Bristol, said the plans would also include ‘E Class’ general use buildings, as well as between 300 and 350 new homes.
‘E Class’ is a new planning use, covering a wide range of retail, business and general use.
“It is anticipated that approximately 300-350 residential units will be provided as part of the proposals,” he said.
“An outline planning application will be submitted for the redevelopment of the site with all matters reserved except access.”
The news comes after a torrid year for restaurants, bingo halls and cinemas because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Cineworld almost went into administration in the autumn, but appeared to have been saved by a Government bail-out at the end of November.
A plan to turn Hengrove Leisure Park into houses would certainly be controversial, especially with the next door former airport at Hengrove Park being developed for housing over the next few years.