TODAY: Public consultation to save Redfield Cinema

TODAY: Public consultation to save Redfield Cinema

Posted on: 30 Nov 2022

Save Redfield Cinema Campaign is a grassroots campaign set up to save the beautiful art deco cinema – one of the oldest in the country

 

People from all over Bristol are invited to several meetings, beginning today (Wednesday 30 November) with the Landrose public consultation between 5 PM and 8:30 PM.

 

The Save Redcliffe Cinema Campaign want as many people as possible to attend the consultation, making sure community voices are heard by the developer as well as their peers.

 

The public consultation will take place today (Wednesday 30 November) at St George's Hall, 203 Church Road, BS5 9HL. Find out more here.

 

 

Located in the back of a former Wetherspoons, Redfield cinema is one of the oldest surviving picture houses in the country, built in 1912 and running as a cinema until it became a bingo hall in 1961 and was then mothballed in the 1970s. 

 

The campaign group achieved Asset of Community Value status for the property in 2021 but Wetherspoons sold the building to a private developer; Landrose, just before, preventing the community from buying it.

 

The developer submitted a planning application for a 44-bed HMO (Houses in Multiple Occupation) after not consulting the public once. As a result of community pressure, Landrose withdrew their application and said they were willing to talk. 

 

However, no meeting was ever arranged despite multiple attempts and Landrose has recently announced that they will submit another planning application for the same 44-bed HMO, except this time they are holding a public consultation – scheduled for 5 PM today at St George’s Hall

 

In the meantime, the campaign group have created a business plan, liaising with an ex-Curzon development lead and funders, including WECA who are highly supportive of the vision, which ties into the council's Local Plan. 

A group of UWE MA Architectural students, calling themselves 'Revive Redfield Cinema', have also been involved, spending time to get a sense of St George's Hall and what it could offer as a community space. 

 

'Revive Redfield Cinema' has organised four events throughout this week where you can see plans, talk to designers and interact with a scale model of the building, exploring the community potential of the space. 

 

The scheduled meetings are as follows: Wednesday 30 November - Bethesda Methodist Church (5:30 PM-9 PM), Thursday 1 December - Wellspring Settlement (1 PM-3 PM), Saturday 3 December - Bethesda Methodist Church (2:30 PM-4 PM), Sunday 4 December - St George Community Centre (5 PM-7 PM).

 

Also taking place today (Wednesday 30 November) at 5 PM, St George's Hall, 203 Church Road is the Landrose public consultation. The Save Redcliffe Cinema Campaign are asking as many people as possible to attend the meeting.

 

In their statement, the campaign said: “We are absolutely sure there's a better way for this building to continue to serve the community, that benefits everyone with a mix of housing, a cinema, food hall and place to gather.”

Find out more about the Save Redfield Cinema campaign here.

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Article by:

Stanley Gray

Stan is a born and bred Bristolian, recently graduated from studying English Literature in Sheffield. His passions are music and literature and he spends the majority of his time in venues all over the city, immersing himself in Bristol’s alternative music scene. A lifelong Bristol City fan, Stan’s Saturdays are spent watching his team both home and away.