A NEW £10 million multiplex cinema is being planned for the centre of Brighton.

Odeon Cinemas wants to demolish its current building in West Street and put up a ten-screen, 2,550-seat complex in its place within the next three years.

If the cinema goes ahead, it will mean Brighton and Hove could have three seafront multiplexes with 30 screens in just four miles.

The Virgin Cinema at Brighton Marina has ten screens, and another ten will be added if the council passes plans for another at the King Alfred Centre in Hove.

The news of Odeon's town centre regeneration proposal comes a day after The Place to Be campaign to give Brighton and Hove city status for the millennium was unveiled.

Geoff Sales, new business manager for Odeon, said: "It's a major development for the seafront area. The town centre will benefit massively from this.

"People who use the cinema are also likely to go out in the town and spend money there."

If the new cinema goes ahead it will employ up to 60 staff.

The ground floor of the new building will house bars and restaurants, including the Hard Rock Cafe, one of just four in Britain.

And Odeon says having ten screens, rather than the current six, will allow it to show a better variety of arts and feature films.

Mr Sales added: "We want to offer everything from Hollywood blockbusters to student films, which we couldn't show at the moment.

"We like to redevelop our old sites rather than build new ones. The design will be very different from the current building.

"The old one isn't to everyone's taste and we want to make it much more in keeping with the surroundings."

Odeon will reveal exactly how the planned cinema is to look in the next few weeks.

Nearby businesses will be hoping for an increase in trade.

Brighton Chamber of Commerce spokesman Frances Hix said: "It's just what we need. We are a town that exists for the leisure industry.

"I'm very pleased the plans are for the town centre. People who go there can then use our wonderful restaurants, bars and cafes afterwards.

"I think that the interior of the existing building is past its sell-by date. We want to offer people who come here a nice new comfortable, air-conditioned place to watch films."

"I just hope the parking facilities will be adequate."

Odeon is currently finalising proposals to deal with parking and traffic flow before the finished plans are submitted to the council.

Paul Guyer, head of acquisitions for Rank Entertainment, which owns the cinema chain, believes redeveloping a town centre site is in line with the Government's policy of cutting unnecessary car journeys.

He thinks it will mean more people will use buses and taxis, instead of venturing out of town.

Mr Guyer said: "We aim to submit the necessary documentation very soon. In planning terms we believe these are more in line than other recent proposals."

The current West Street cinema dates back to 1973. Before that it was an ice rink.

A Brighton and Hove Council spokeswoman said that as Odeon has not yet submitted its application it could not comment.

Odeon is Britain's biggest cinema operator, with more than 450 screens at 80 sites.

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