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A new sign in Nuneaton town centre appears to make a huge hint over who could be behind a new cinema.
The ‘Transforming Nuneaton’ plan can be seen on the boarding around the demolished part of the former Co-op.
Within the picture there is a building with the word ‘Vue’ on it.
Vue is a cinema chain and, as we previously reported in our newsletter, Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council has not hidden the fact that it wants to get a cinema into part of the former Co-op site.
In January, the council confirmed that talks are underway with a cinema operator with a view to opening a venue in the former Co-op department store site.
But a Town Hall spokesperson said the new plans are only a concept.
“The plans shown are conceptual and hence subject to change,” the spokesman told CoventryLive.
In April it was revealed that Queensberry, which specialises in mixed use regenerations schemes across the UK, has been brought in to ensure that the ambitious plans for Abbey Street get off the ground.
They will be championing the plans for a cinema, restaurants and bars in part of the former Co-op building as well as the land left after part of the store was demolished.
Other proposals include a new ‘plaza’-style public area, which will open out onto Abbey Street, as well as seating and an amphitheatre area for live music and plays.
There are also plans for an element of residential accommodation within the area.
Funding is key to ensuring that the Abbey Street element of the ‘Transforming Nuneaton’ programme can go-ahead.
Some of this could come through the government’s Future High Street Fund.
The council is one of 100 to be shortlisted to get hold of government cash and the Abbey Street plan, chiefly the residential side of it, will form part of the business case the council has to submit by the summer.
Watch: The plans to transform the town centre
Other cash could be heading the town centre’s way through another government fund, the MyTown, which offered a guarantee of up to £25m of funding.
If the bid is successful, this is likely to be spent on the wider ‘Transforming Nuneaton’ programme, namely helping to solve infrastructure and access issues so more people can get into the town centre easily.
Movement is also being made on another of the 12 sites in the programme, the Vicarage Street area.
This is being championed by Warwickshire County Council, which is spearheading ‘Transforming Nuneaton’ with the borough council, and will see a new library, offices and a cafe built as part of a £20m scheme.
The huge project was unveiled at the start of the last year, with a series of wish-list images of some of the ambitions for the town centre.
It includes revamping the bus station and train station area into a combined transport hub with new bus and rail connections and a new multi-storey car park.
Other plans include a giant TV screen in the town centre, described as a ‘theatre place’, an ‘active wall’ and a ‘linear park’.
There are also proposals to create a new home for the arts and complimentary quarter as well as bringing more homes and restaurants into the town to help boost the night-time economy.
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