A plan is afoot for a classic Greater Manchester cinema, with architects appointed to “deliver where others have failed”. The iconic Curzon Cinema in Urmston will be reinvented as a mixed-use venue for small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) and community groups, after years of failed redevelopment plans.
The cinema was opened in 1936 and remained operable as a cinema until 2008, boasting a distinctly Art Deco design right in the heart of the town. The building, off Bowfell Road in Urmston, has been acquired by church organisation CRC which is set to repurpose the building that has been vacant for several years, planning a phased refurbishment including a ground-floor coffee shop and office space on the second floor.
Meanwhile, the main auditorium and the Grand Lobby on the first floor will also be brought back to life. The church group is currently based on nearby Brook Road and says the building will be used for services on Sundays.
CRC is working with Brass Architecture which is drawing up plans due to be submitted to Trafford Council’s planning department soon. Brass co-founder Ricky Sellars said the upgraded cinema building would be ideal for meetings, classes, functions and events, as well as SMEs, community groups and local residents.
He also said: “Our proposals for the redevelopment of the former Curzon Cinema in Urmston will restore this treasured building to its former glory.
“It will be a community institution, a local destination, and a local icon. The building will be returned as a modern-day theatre.”
Things weren’t going particularly well for the building last year when developer Raynor Rowen scrapped plans to convert the building into 42 apartments following protests from residents, which is why the building has been untouched since.
Mr Sellars added that the revised proposals were aimed at being of benefit to the community, and will go hand-in-hand with future plans for regeneration in the general Urmston area.