from: Cllr Jonathan Cardy
re: Financial viability of cinemas 30 October 2001

Dear Editor,

Mr Benson's comments about the financial viability of cinemas and also Public Transport for the Twickenham riverside:

Previous cinemas in Twickenham and nearby have closed not necessarily because they couldn't make a profit, but because the owners could get a bigger profit by using the site for offices, shops or housing. In this case however the council will own the freehold and could therefore veto any attempt to turn the Cinema into a Nightclub, Bingo Hall or Casino.

As both the planning authority and the freeholder the council has rather more control over the use of a site than if it was just the planning authority.

I'm afraid I have to contradict Mr Benson on his assertion that the Twickenham Riverside site has limited public transport, if you check the local bus maps you'll see that King street is actually the hub of the local bus network. I can't think of a location on this side of the Borough with better local public transport links.

Regards

Jonathan Cardy
Councillor for Hampton Nursery