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Anger greets plan to bulldoze Odeon site
A plan to tear down an iconic building to make way for new homes and shops has been met with strong opposition.
The historic art deco building of the Odeon Cinema in North End, Portsmouth, is one of the last remaining structures of its kind in the area.
Portsmouth City Council has now received a planning application from Southampton-based Madinah Properties to tear down the derelict building in London Road and build four new blocks containing shops, one and two bedroom flats and three terraced houses.
The proposed development has been met with stern opposition from local campaigners, the Portsmouth Society.
Secretary Roger James said: 'We are very keen that the central tower should remain and we have written to object to the development.
'It is an iconic building, we have lost one of these in Southsea already and we don't want to lose another.
'We also think that re-developing the area should make better arrangements for rear access to the shops.'
Cllr Jason Fazackarley from Portsmouth City Council is opposing the development on behalf of his constituents in Nelson ward.
He said: 'I have had a number of reports from people opposing the application so I have put an objection in myself.
'I do not think it should happen. There are a number of grounds that people do not want the development to go ahead because of the history of the building and other reasons such as parking problems. I'm in consensual agreement with the people opposing the scheme.'
Les Weymes, planning consultant for the development, defended the scheme.
'The applicants believe that the building does not have an economic future and there is no place for it in the local area plan,' he said.
'The replacement of the tower was a pre-requisite of a new scheme. The current building has come to the end of its economic life and it's not listed so we have taken the view that there is a need to provide a visual statement in the area.' Council planning chiefs have not yet set a date to decide on the building's future.
The cinema opened its doors on Monday, December 14, 1936, with the films Chick, starring Sydney Howard, and Don't Gamble With Love, starring Bruce Cabot.
The cinema's foyer was destroyed by a bomb blast in a nearby alleyway during the Second World War, while movie-goers were inside.
Despite the emergence of television, it received some of its biggest attendances in the late 60s, with 33,500 people attending the first week's screening of Mary Poppins.
The curtain came down for the final time on January, 10, 2008, with a showing of the Will Smith blockbuster, I Am Legend.
The building has since been used by a discount store.
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Friday 10 February 2012
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