Preston's former Odeon and nightclub site to become car park

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 12 Oct, 09:18 · Archive

The site where Preston's Odeon cinema and Tokyo Jo's nightclub once stood will become a 116-space pay-and-display car park.

The Preston city centre site where the Odeon cinema and Tokyo Jo's nightclub once stood is to return to being a car park. Councillors gave approval for a 116-space pay-and-display facility on the prime plot off Church Street, with the hope that housing will eventually be built there. The site was largely cleared after a fire ripped through the two redundant buildings in May 2022. The Odeon, whose art deco facade remains standing, had been empty for 30 years, and the nightclub had closed in 2020 after several reinventions.

A temporary car park operated on the land following the fire, but the two-year parking permission granted by Preston City Council's planning committee lapsed in January 2025. The site has been empty since then. Committee members approved the permanent car park proposal – which goes against local planning policy – on the basis it was the most realistic route to achieving the residential development the city authority ultimately wants to see delivered. The planning permission has been granted only to the applicant, Progressive Living, rather than being attached to the site itself.

How it is being reported

• Former nightclub and cinema site in Preston set to become car park once againThe site in Preston's city centre is to be transformed into a car park again - with the hopes housing will be built there tooLancsLive · 12 Oct, 09:04
• Car park 'best hope’ of redeveloping Preston’s former Odeon cinema and Tokyo Jo’s siteThe city council and the site’s owner ultimately want to see new homes appear on the plot.Chorley Guardian · 12 Oct, 07:13

In this story: Preston · Odeon · Tokyo Jo's · Progressive Living · Preston City Council

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