Penistone town councillors are hoping to buy the Penistone Paramount cinema for £1 after Barnsley Council cancelled planned renovation work.
The Reform-led Barnsley Council has withdrawn funding for a £1.8m redevelopment of Penistone Town Hall, which houses the cinema, as part of a budget review. The previous Labour administration had approved the renovation scheme.
Councillors say £1 is an appropriate price because the building requires extensive refurbishment. They say they can access alternative funding sources to carry out the necessary work.
Background to the cinema
Penistone Town Hall was built in 1914 and has shown films since 1915. Barnsley Council acquired the building in 1974 and ran the Paramount cinema until the early 1990s when it faced closure.
Penistone town councillors then stepped in, leasing the building from Barnsley Council and taking on day-to-day operations of the cinema.
State of the building
Baroness Hannah Kitching, Mayor of Penistone, said the building has been neglected for approximately 50 years. A new roof was installed a couple of years ago, but before that the cinema had buckets positioned to catch rainwater drips.
The rest of the building does not meet accessibility requirements or fire regulations, has no heating system and has been stripped out while awaiting the renovation work that Barnsley Council is no longer willing to fund.
Community support and funding options
More than 4,000 people have signed a petition to save the venue.
Kitching said town councillors of all political parties had unanimously agreed to approach Barnsley Council with the offer. She noted that Barnsley Council's previous commitment to funding had made the building ineligible for other sources of grants.
The parish council is now exploring external grants, crowdfunding, borrowing money or potentially increasing council tax precepts to fund the necessary repairs.
