FILM fans in Newport will soon be able to enjoy “cosy” movie nights at a new venue in the city centre, after council planners granted planning permission.
Applicant Cosy Cinema has been given the green light to install 15 “pods” on the lower floors of the Chartist Tower, at 1-3 Upper Dock Street.
Each pod measures five metres long by 2.5 metres wide, and can accommodate up to six people for daytime showings of films.
Cosy Cinema has also won permission to provide overnight stays at the pods for up to two adults and a child.
The pods are heated and air conditioned, and will contain a Playstation games console and access to entertainment streaming services.
The space will also contain six shower and toilet rooms, as well as a laundry and storage area for staff, or “pod keepers”.
The storage area will house supplies for so-called “Cosy Combos” – snacks and fizzy drinks available to buy.
Newport City Council planners noted the unit was initially marketed for food and drink use but had “remained vacant” despite the “wider redevelopment” of Chartist Tower, the majority of which is now a four-star Mercure Hotel.
It would therefore be “acceptable in principle” for the unit to be used for leisure or accommodation purposes, the planners said.
Access to the Cosy Cinema will be from Corn Street, planning documents show.
The council planners did raise some concerns about the loss of retail frontage, but judged that “in this instance the benefits of the scheme outweigh the non-compliance”.
Granting planning permission with conditions, they concluded “the proposed development will bring [this] prominent corner unit back into a sustainable use having been vacant for many years”.
