Shock closure of city cinema | Hawkes Bay News | Local News in Hawkes Bay

The curtains are coming down on 80 years of cinematic history when Reading Cinemas closes its Hastings theatre on Sunday night, making the town the only metropolitan city in the country without a movie theatre.

Staff at the theatre were told of a possible closure last week and had it confirmed on Thursday when 20 people were made redundant.

The only public notification of the closure had been a newsletter via email to Hastings Reading Reel Club members. It said Reading Cinemas wanted to thank its Hastings members for their "loyalty and patronage".

"But unfortunately our Hastings complex will be closing on Sunday, 29th January," it said.

The final movie under the Reading banner will screen at the Hastings theatre at 6.45pm tomorrow, titled The Darkest Hour.

Reading Entertainment New Zealand operations manager Mark Kendrick would not elaborate on why the cinema had been closed, only to say the lease on the Heretaunga St theatre had expired and the company decided not to renew it.

He said there was a chance some staff could transfer to the company's Napier cinema and there were no plans to close any of its other eight cinemas around the country. "That is the only comment we have to make at this time," Mr Kendrick said.

Competition from DVD rental shops, online download sites and boutique cinemas could have contributed to the company wanting to consolidate its operations in Napier where it owned the theatre on Station St.

The theatre it operated in Heretaunga St was owned by a syndicate of Hawke's Bay investors, which were keen to investigate the possibility of taking over the business.

One of the owners, Joanne Edwards, said they had not had any formal notification of the closure but was told it would be updated by Reading Cinemas on February 10. She said: "We really want to make sure that Hastings retains its cinema.

"If we have to take it over and run it ourselves, we'll look at doing it."

The syndicate bought the theatre building on 124 Heretaunga St in 2004 but it had began life as the State Theatre, built in 1933. It was redeveloped to accommodate Hawke's Bay Multiplex Cinemas which moved in during the 1990s and later renamed Reading Cinemas.

Hastings once featured three movie theatres down its main street, the Cosy Theatre at 301 Heretaunga St West, the Regent Picture theatre, later renamed the Westend, at 340 Heretaunga St East, and the State.

Hastings City Business Association general manager Jane Janes said it would be a priority to attract an alternative operator to reopen if at all possible.

Hawke's Bay Chamber of Commerce chief executive Murray Douglas said he was keen to help efforts towards making sure a cinema continues to operate in Hastings.