Newcastle City Councillors are expected to determine the fate of the old Regal Cinema on Tuesday night. Council officers have recommended selling the facility, which has fallen into disrepair since it was closed two years ago.
The proposal to sell the old cinema, has outraged the Friends of the Regal Group. According to David Horkan, “It takes no account of the community interest, I think we do need to remember that the land on which the building stands, which is now in council ownership was originally donated to the community.”
Not only that, they say the cinema itself was built entirely by volunteers, using donated materials.
“There’s no conception that perhaps morally it’s not their land to sell, it belongs to the people of Newcastle,” says Mr Horkan.
The group wants the land retained by Newcastle City Council, and a multi-purpose centre with student accommodation and a new art house theatre built on the site .
But Council says selling to a developer could be the only way that plan is made a reality.
Newcastle Lord Mayor John Tate says, “I don’t believe that the rate payers of Newcastle should be providing a theatre of any type of this nature, but by the same token if we can facilitate that at no cost to rate payers then that’s hat we should be trying to do.”
Councillors will decide the cinema’s fate Tuesday night.
