Controversial plans to transform Gosport’s Criterion Cinema into a new arts centre take a significant step forward
Plans to transform Gosport’s historic Criterion Cinema into a new arts centre have taken a significant step forward.
Gosport Borough Council has approved the first phase of the restoration, which will transform the building’s annexe into a vibrant arts-led community café, set to open in March 2026.
The first part of the restoration will focus on refurbishing and re-opening the ground floor annexe as a community café, which will include a flexible space for pop-up cultural events, complemented by a new bar, kitchen and toilets.
The Criterion, in Forton Road, was bought by the council for £600,000 in 2022 as it wanted to create a new entertainment venue for the area funded by grants. It operated as a cinema and theatre until 1968 and was then a bingo hall until its closure in 2020.
It’s future has been at the centre of much disagreement and, as previously reported by The News, consultants Counterculture and Gosport Borough Council officers have warned that even after refurbishment, the Criterion would make losses and the cost to keep it trading could fall to the taxpayer. Opinions have also varied on when it may breakeven.
To kick-start the project, an estimated £1.42 million is needed for the ground floor to be opened as a cinema and live pop-up venue.
In a previously secret document, revealed to the public as part of a freedom of information request, Counterculture said as much as £325,000 would then be needed to support the venue in total for the first three to five years. It could breakeven after three-and-a-half years, it added.
Plans also assume a suitable charity can be found or established to run the venue which was originally pencilled in to open in September 2025. Time has been allowed to grow an audience of 44,000 visitors each year which is needed for the venue to work.
Announcing the latest news about the Criterion, Gosport Borough Council has also said plans to transform the borough’s former bus station into ‘The People’s Park’ have also progressed, with the council appointing HGP Architects Ltd to prepare a planning application for the next phases of the scheme.
The application will propose the development of five permanent food and beverage units, an accessible WC and changing places facility, a new ticket office for the Ferry Company, a bicycle hire concession, and a dedicated event structure for the Park area.
The planning application for The People's Park is expected to be submitted in the coming weeks, with the procurement of a main contractor anticipated in the autumn, ahead of construction commencing later in the year.
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Gosport Borough Council Leader, Peter Chegwyn, said that both projects complemented the town’s broader £30 million waterfront regeneration scheme.
He said: “These approvals mark an exciting step forward for Gosport. Regeneration is about breathing new life into our spaces and creating places people can be proud of. Whether reviving our much-loved former cinema or advancing plans for The People’s Park to revitalise the waterfront and create a welcoming gateway to Gosport. We are committed to supporting the borough’s future and its community well-being, so these spaces can be enjoyed for years to come.”
The former bus depot site, which opened in 1972, served as a key transportation hub for over 50 years and it closed in October 2024 following completion of the brand-new bus interchange nearby.
Following the opening of the new transport interchange, Gosport Borough Council revealed its vision to redevelop the old bus station into The People’s Park, aimed at enhancing the town centre and waterfront area. This initiative is part of a broader effort to regenerate Gosport's waterfront and create a welcoming gateway for residents and visitors. However, the demolition of the former bus station, to make way for the People’s Park, was delayed as a result of nesting birds.
The council also said that two separate, but complementary, Government-funded projects are also running alongside to improve the borough. This includes the wider Waterfront project and the renovation of the Rum Store at Royal Clarence Yard.