Futurist consigned to past…

Demolition plans submitted could bring curtain down on Scarborough theatre.

Scarborough Council has submitted the planning application needed to demolish the Futurist theatre. The authority voted by a margin of one in January to knock down the historic venue.

This decision was met with protests, with local residents expressing concerns that the demolition could destabilise the cliff it is on – and the homes situated above it. Dr Bill Murphy, University of Leeds engineer geologist, said the coastline had “stability problems” with soft rocks at the surface deposited by glacial tills 1800 years ago.

The council said demolition would not start until it was satisfied it could be done without destabilising the cliff or surrounding area.

Since then, ground investigation works have been carried out by the contractor Willmott Dixon and now the final plan has been submitted to the council’s planning department.

The plans only relate to the demolition, not the potential £20 million Flamingo Land attraction which is slated to replace it. That will require a separate application in the future.

The demolition is expected to cost the council around £4 million.

Read more here.