Brunswick Cinema: Partner chosen for Scarborough’s ambitious multi-million pound development

Scarborough Group International (SGI), the developer of the multi-million pound Brunswick Cinema development, has confirmed the selection of a partner to run the cinema.

The conversion of Scarborough’s ailing Brunswick shopping centre was approved by councillors in March as part of a plan to convert it into a leisure-led destination, complete with national bar and restaurant chains, indoor sport and recreation, and increased parking space.

Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS), the Scarborough Group confirmed that it was due to finalise a legal agreement with the operator.

It said that the name of the partner is due to be announced “in the near future”.

The developer has said that the cinema will take up to 2,700 sqm out of the Brunswick’s almost 14,000 sqm of space, with the exact number of screens and the size of the cinema set to be agreed with the operator.

A spokesperson for Scarborough Group told the LDRS: “We’ve selected a cinema partner for the Brunswick and are in the process of concluding a legal agreement with them for a high-quality, multi-screen cinema complex.

“Unfortunately, we’re not in a position to confirm the operator’s identity at present for commercial reasons, but expect to be able to do so in the near future.”

The ambitious plan is set to see the internal and external transformation of the shopping centre, which opened in the 1990s but has seen a decline in trade and tenants.

Asked about a start date for works to commence at the Brunswick, an SGI spokesperson said: “Lettings to other occupiers, and detailed scheme engineering and design will need to be concluded before we can start on site.”

Before it approved plans for a town centre cinema, the now-defunct Scarborough Council had worked with developer Benchmark Leisure for several years to build a cinema on the site of the former Atlantis water park in the North Bay.

Last week it was announced that Benchmark Leisure, which is the developer of the Alpamare water park in Scarborough, had gone into administration.