Bar eyeing a move to old cinema
MAKE WAY FOR COUNCIL CUSTOMER
BUDDIES TO
A BAR which claims it is being “chucked out” of its premises to make way for North West Leicestershire District Council’s new main customer service hub is eyeing a move to a former cinema.
Buddies Bar, which opened in a unit of the Belvoir Shopping Centre, Coalville, in January, will close this weekend after a bitter row with the council and the centre’s owners, Gylo.
The saga has sparked anger among residents, with a petition calling for a rethink on the move having amassed more than 1,200 signatures – but the bar believes a solution may be on the horizon. The former Rex Cinema, which has been closed since 2016, is currently listed as ‘to let’ and Buddies believe it could become their new home.
They undertook a viewing earlier this week, alerting their supporters on social media.
“What an amazing building for a new Buddies,” they said. “We know there is funding out there, but we are struggling to access it.”
The Rex was most recently a Dunelm furnishings store. The cinema seating areas remain, with only the ground floor open for rent.
Numerous campaigns to get the Rex restored to its former glory have sprung up over the years.
The historic nature of the building is one Buddies believe cannot be ignored.
“This is part of Coalville’s heritage and we believe that the councils both local and county should get behind this project,” they said.
The calls for help come after the bar repeatedly denied receiving support from either the council or Gylo over its move from the shopping centre. However, Gylo maintain they have offered help to the bar.
Buddies closes tomorrow with a “drink the bar dry” event to make way for the council’s customer service hub which is expected to open in May next year.
Buddies say they remain committed to the town.
They said: “There has been thousands spent on other projects to regenerate in the town so why not this one? Buddies has not given up on Coalville!”