Design for Bournemouth Imax cinema site

The new outdoor entertainment area could be open in time for summer 2013

Bournemouth Borough Council has released designs for a new seafront entertainment space on the site of the former Imax cinema.

The cinema is set to be demolished in the autumn to make way for a new public area hosting music concerts, markets and open-air performances.

Public consultation on the proposal closes on Wednesday and, if approved, could be completed by next summer.

The Imax cinema closed in 2005 after only three years in business.

The Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and Pavilion Dance have both already expressed an interest in staging performances at the waterfront site.

Council leader John Beesley said: "A public consultation we carried out in 2010 showed an entertainment and events space was amongst the top preferred uses for the site."