Yahoo News Northumberland County Council's cabinet agree £500,000 in further funding for Blyth's new cultural venue
Northumberland County Council's ruling cabinet has agreed to put forward more than half a million pounds in extra funding for the new cultural venue at Blyth's market place.
Known as Market Pavilion, the new venue will host a three-screen cinema operated by North-East based Jam Jar Cinemas, along with a café and an events space for cultural activities and learning. Completion has now moved a step closer with the approval of more cash that will be used to fit out the building.
Externally, the cladding is now almost complete, meaning it will be ready for internal work in the near future. Speaking at Tuesday's meeting of the council's cabinet, portfolio holder for corporate services, Coun Wojciech Ploszaj claimed the new venue would work alongside other investments in the town.
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He said: "If you visit Blyth you can see the nice, massive building in front of the slightly neglected shops and the massive market square. We hope this will bring a lot of footfall to the town centre.
"We have had positive comments about our learning hub with young people using the town centre and bringing footfall back. This particular item is about half a million for the fit-out of the building. At the moment, we are getting the cladding done and it will be ready for fit-out soon.
"I think it is very good news. I'm looking forward to seeing a movie at Jam Jar and having some other sessions to go to."
Council leader Glen Sanderson added: "It's a fantastic new facility for Blyth."
The £15 million scheme is being funded by the Government via the Future High Streets fund, with additional money provided by the county council and the North East Combined Authority.
Kier Construction are expected to complete work on the facility by June 2025, with a launch event set to take place in August of the same year.
