Mr Dell was responding to a DA submitted to Port Macquarie-Hastings Council for a $34.7m development on the former St Joseph’s Primary School site on the corner of Warlters and Parks streets.

The CEO said investment for Port Macquarie was crucial, but added the development simply replicates a number of existing businesses and facilities.

“These services are already provided by long running small business owners in the CBD and greater Port Macquarie region,” he said.

Mr Dell said the potential loss of the cinema in the Ritz centre could see a drop of some 250,000 visitors and foot traffic for existing restaurants, cafes and other businesses in the CBD.

It would also lead to the geographical separation of the cinema and Glasshouse locations, both key providers of entertainment in the region and supportive partners in the existing entertainment precinct, he said.

Additional to the issues created for the CBD businesses, residents and businesses in the Westport Park precinct have voiced a range of objections to the application. 

Loss of views, access, increased traffic congestion and parking complications, as well as concerns about noise impacts and the visual amenity so close to the foreshore, are all being raised as complaints, he added.

The DA has been submitted by United Cinemas, a Sydney-based cinema chain who currently operate cinemas exclusively in capital cities and their surrounding areas. It includes a nine screen 1400 seat cinema, bowling alley, gym, indoor sports centre, car wash, fast food and restaurants.

The Hatsatouris family have owned the Ritz Centre building since it opened in 1937. At the time of its construction it was one of the largest cinemas outside a metropolitan area.

Mr Dell said the site had been updated multiple times over its 85 year existence to keep pace with changes in the industry.

”Majestic Cinemas, the operators of the cinema complex since 2006, along with the Hatsatouris family, completed the latest update in 2013, a $6 million dollar, long awaited redevelopment.

“This brought the complex up to five cinemas, with a range of sizes to cater for all different audiences.

“Together with our fellow independent cinema at Laurieton, this increased the screens available in the Port Macquarie region from four to seven.

“For a population of approximately 78,000 people in the Greater Port Macquarie region, this means we have a cinema screen for every 11,000 people, which is in line or lower than most comparable regional areas,” Mr Dell said.

“The concern is that an additional nine cinemas, as proposed by the DA submission, would bring this ratio down to less than 5000 people per screen, less than half to two-thirds of any comparable regional area, potentially making all three businesses unsustainable.

“To make 16 screens viable in Port Macquarie, using industry average statistics for similar regional areas, the population would need to be between 176,000 and 248,000. More than two to three times the current population level.

“There are several examples of new cinemas being built in regional areas where both the new and the existing businesses struggle to stay alive, often having a long term negative impact on the region, as large unoccupied buildings are left in key locations in the towns and any surviving cinemas are outside the centre of town.”

Mr Dell said operating a cinema in a regional area is very different to operating in a metropolitan location. He said Majestic have a long history on the Mid-North Coast, having been founded in Nambucca Heads in 2002.

“We regularly screen a wide variety of cultural events requested by our patrons such as opera, ballet, national theatre live, art exhibitions and concerts events,” he said.

He said to help maintain competitive price, Majestic had introduced a movie club which boasted some 6000 members.

Mr Dell said Majestic strives to maximum the range of titles available and also understand the diversity of regional audiences better than any metropolitan-based operator could.

“We live and work in this community, and constantly respond to the feedback of our members and the community.

“We also regularly contribute to fund raising events and run many fundraisers for local charitable causes.

“It is important to Majestic that we are not just an entertainment facility, but a part of the vibrant community that makes up the wonderful Port Macquarie region.”

Mr Dell said Majestic Cinemas had expansion plans that aligned with population growth.

“However, this will only be done as and when the population growth warrants the changes,” he said.

Mr Dell said Majestic Cinemas’ website included a qanda along with a link to a petition.

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