Cinema withdrawal from leisure park a 'heartbreak'

Delays to the opening of a new cinema at an out-of-town leisure park are disappointing, shoppers have said.

Colchester City Council started looking for an alternative operator in July after Cineworld pulled out of the Northern Gateway development.

Now, five months on, the leisure park's cinema unit is still empty - and other businesses have delayed fitting out their premises until another cinema operator is confirmed.

The council said: "While we appreciate that progress can feel slow, significant developments like this are long-term investments."

Currently, six businesses - a bowling alley, hotel, three fast-food chains, and an electric vehicle charging station - are open, but three units are empty.

Independent restaurant Taste Of Italy is set to open its second branch in a matter of weeks.

Owner Sergio Teacu, 32, told the BBC he had spent his savings and loans to set up at a leisure park with "no people".

"People need reasons to come here... they will go other places which are functional and have everything running."

Mr Teacu said he paid service charges to the council, and it currently costs £3 for parking.

"Imagine, everything is empty and they are still demanding money... how do you attract people to come here to sustain the businesses when you're doing this," he said.

He added "it was a heartbreak" to learn Cineworld were not joining the park.

Colchester City Council said the service charge helped maintain high-quality facilities for visitors and tenants, but it said there was a regular dialogue with tenants for addressing any concerns.

Colchester City Council announced Cineworld's departure from the project in October, almost 11 weeks after the chain pulled out, a Freedom of Information request made by the BBC revealed.

At the time, Liberal Democrat council leader David King refused to be pressed on how much public money had been spent on the scheme.

When responding to the BBC's Freedom of Information request, the authority refused to disclose how much money it had spent and was continuing to spend on the Northern Gateway development.

It said in 2021 it would cost £65m.

The city council said it had delayed announcing Cineworld's withdrawal until the cinema operator's restructuring plans "had officially been rubberstamped by the court", for the sake of accurate communications.

Glenn Matthews, 47, was walking his dog through the empty units "to see if they'd been filled up yet".

He believes the council should be open about the costs.

He said: "It's public money so they should make that information available, shouldn't they?

"It's just frustrating isn't it, just sitting there doing nothing and we're paying for it. This should have been opened ages ago as far as I'm aware."

He said taxpayers are currently paying to "subsidise empty shops".

Train engineer Freddie Bulpit, 39, was taking his family bowling, but was looking forward to seeing a cinema.

"With all the information that was coming out... we thought 'this is brilliant'.

"We're a stones-throw where we live, and [it} saves going into town for the extremely expensive parking.

"Obviously, we've been let down because we were looking forward to the cinema... it's quite sparse, isn't it?" he added.

A spokesperson for Colchester City Council said: "We understand the community's concerns and want to address them directly.

"Regarding Cineworld, while we became aware in July of their financial difficulties, we waited until Cineworld's restructuring plans had officially been rubberstamped by the court before making a public announcement.

"This ensured that our communication was accurate and that we could approach alternative providers with clarity and confidence.

"We acknowledge that three units remain vacant. Interest in these spaces and the cinema site has been substantial.

"At this stage, we're not in a position to share further details, but we anticipate being able to provide an update very soon.

"We are confident that Colchester Leisure Park will be a major asset for Colchester, delivering substantial benefits to residents, businesses, and visitors alike."

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