Spit Junction cinema to be demolished to make way for B-Line rapid bus transit service

FIVE years after the movies stopped, there’s now confirmation the former cinema site at Spit Junction will be demolished.

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FIVE years after the movies stopped, there’s now confirmation the former cinema site at Spit Junction will be demolished.

But in its place will not be a multistorey apartment complex as many have thought.

Instead, the State Government will seize control of the site so it can build an off-street bus stop for the B-Line bus transit service.

A Transport for NSW (TfNSW) spokeswoman told the Mosman Daily negotiations are under way with property owner, Event Hospitality & Entertainment Limited (EHE), to acquire the site by year’s end.

“TfNSW is currently preparing a design for the site which includes a B-Line bus stop and some associated road works,” she said.

Those affected by the government’s move will be compensated, Transport for NSW says. Picture: Braden Fastier

“A time frame for ­demolition of the building is subject to a number of factors, including community consultation and a tendering process, however B-Line infrastructure will be delivered before the B-Line service commences in late 2017.”

Taxpayers would foot the bill to compensate those affected by the move.

“All parties, including the freehold owners and tenants who have an interest in the land at the time TfNSW require the land, will be compensated. The compensation … has yet to be determined,” the spokeswoman said.

The government’s plans were revealed during consultation over EHE’s proposal to amend the Mosman LEP to allow for an eight-storey building on the site.

The proposal, opposed by TfNSW, was up for discussion at Mosman Council’s Urban Planning Committee meeting on Wednesday.

An artist’s impression of the B-Line new double buses and Brookvale bus stop.

Committee member and Mosman Councillor Roy Bendall said the government’s move could have consequences for other property owners along the B-Line route.

“It does not bode well for every retailer along the Military and Spit roads corridor,” Cr Bendall said.

“It’s a very dangerous precedent for private property rights in the region.”

EHE was contacted for comment.

WHAT ABOUT THE TUNNEL?

Westconnex. B-Line. Light Rail.

The State Government has moved to fast-track big-ticket transport initiatives in recent times but many on the lower north shore have been left to ask — what about the tunnel under Spit and Military roads?

Premier Mike Baird and Minister for Transport and Infrastructure Andrew Constance look over plans for the B-Line last year. Picture: Martin Lange

Premier Mike Baird trumpeted the congestion-busting solution in 2014 and set aside $5 million in that year’s state budget for a feasibility study — but almost two years on, that study is still in its infancy.

“(The study) will investigate connectivity options between the Seaforth/Balgowlah area and Sydney’s Motorway Network close to the Warringah Freeway corridor,” a Transport for NSW spokeswoman said.

Cr Bendall said: “I’m not holding my breath for that report to be finished ... How long does it take to write a report? There’s been three previous reports done.”