[size=16pt]Hundreds sign petition . . . [/size]

MORE than 1,300 people have signed a petition calling for a former cinema to return to a town centre, writes Kate Mead.

Crystal Palace residents are urging the council to return the former Gala bingo club, in Church Road, to its original use of a cinema.

Evangelical church the Kingsway International Christian Centre (KICC) bought the site on June 30 but residents intend to fight the proposal to turn it a place of worship.

The building currently has 'Assembly and Leisure' classification but the KICC lodged an application with Bromley council to change it to use for public worship.

Residents and traders have collected hundreds of signatures on their petition and the Cinema for Crystal Palace group on Facebook has attracted more than 600 members.

The Crystal Palace Triangle Planning Group, which was set up to oppose inappropriate development in the area, has promised that it will organise protests against the proposed church.

Spokesperson for the group Annabel Sidney said: "A church will remove a prime community venue. Congregations of potentially up to 1,400 will increase congestion and could take take all our parking. This will discourage people from shopping in the area and add absolutely nothing to the area's economic viability. A cinema would bring many benefits to the area - employment, trade and community use."

The venue started life as the Rialto cinema before it became the Granada which closed in 1968. City Screen, the company behind Ritzy Brixton and the Clapham Picture House, had made an offer for the site in a but were beaten by KICC in the sealed bids auction.

Ms Sidney added: "The majority of people who came to our first meeting have never got involved in any sort of campaign before. This has really touched a local nerve."

A spokesman for Bromley council said an application to change the use of the building had not yet been received but when it was a consultation would take place. Liberal Democrat councillor John Canvin, said that people in his ward are concerned about the increase in traffic to the area due to limited parking, adding: "There is very strong feeling against it.

"It is a loss of a public building which would be available for all denominations. To put a church there would restrict it to people of a certain theological denomination and would attract others from outside the area."

A spokesman for KICC told reporters that the site will be used for church services on Sunday mornings and evenings and Tuesday evenings.

It is also believed that the site will be open during the week for youth clubs, counselling, a book shop and café.

Pastor Dipo Oluyomi of the KICC said: "All our church members are really looking forward to working with the community to contribute to the regeneration of Church Road. We definitely appreciate people's opinions. However, we feel they need to know us first for there to be any judgement as to who they think we are."

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I can't help but imagine if this were happening in naija. . .the citizens of the council would probably throw a parade because Ashimolowo the crook is coming to town. It wouldn't even matter if he took all the parking space and obstructs businesses.You would not even hear a voice of protest instead you'll hear things like "He's a man of god" "touch not my anointed" "remember the widow who housed elijah" "do not forget the harlot Rahab who housed the spies" and blah blah blah- chai!

Fight on good citizens of crystal palace! Eject that criminal from your midst. . .make him know that lagos ibadan express way doesn't have an extension in england!

Whether they like it or not, the church will prevail. It is high time Europe which deserted God and turned to accultism, converting church buidings to cinemas and shopping malls, give them all back to God's people.

What do they mean? As if the church just dropped from the sky. Is it not the citizenry that make up the church?

Nonsense!

donnie:

Whether they like it or not, the church will prevail. It is high time Europe which deserted God and turned to accultism, converting church buidings to cinemas and shopping malls, give them all back to God's people.

What do they mean? As if the church just dropped from the sky. Is it not the citizenry that make up the church?

Nonsense!

Thats why they have a considerably better life than jesus drunk nigerians.

Tudór:

Ashimolowo the crook is coming to town.

Am shocked at the tendency of labelling every man who come in "God's name" crook.

donnie:


Europe which deserted God and turned to accultism

Is Europe much more occultic than Nigeria?

The City council should have defined who and what org shud bid and for what purpose.
Opening churches all over d place aint bad but host city interest
should prevail sometimes.
Its not like naija where mosques,churches,petrol stations and bukas are set up anywhere,anyhow,anyday
with govt officials keeping mute.

Kx:

Am shocked at the tendency of labelling every man who come in "God's name" crook.

That FOOL wasn't sent by God but was mandated by his pocket. Thats how he was indicted for embezzling £120k pounds from the church fund and using £80k to buy a luxury porsche for his birthday present!
What the hell does a preacher need an expensive luxury porsche for??. . . .Jesus formula one grand prix

Kx:

Am shocked at the tendency of labelling every man who come in "God's name" crook.

That FOOL wasn't sent by God but was mandated by his pocket. Thats how he was indicted for embezzling £120k pounds from the church fund and using £80k to buy a luxury porsche for his birthday present!
What the hell does a preacher need an expensive luxury porsche for??. . . .Jesus formula one grand prix

Church will do nothing to help the community and wait till they start doing thier all night services and end of month services washnight services taking up the small parking space all the money going into Ashimolowo's pocket. If their spokeman had morals they wouldn't have bid for the place but obviously africaman is only thinking of how much dollars they can make from thier business venture.

donnie:

Whether they like it or not, the church will prevail. It is high time Europe which deserted God and turned to accultism, converting church buidings to cinemas and shopping malls, give them all back to God's people.

What do they mean? As if the church just dropped from the sky. Is it not the citizenry that make up the church?

Nonsense!

yes the same europe lots of the religious Nigerians are begging to live in.

I only have 1 thing to say to these people.
"Good Citizens, Great Nation"

its a bad idea to renovate the bulding into a church but then the masses need thier opium

What a way to announce a return

i really dont understand white people,there is a palpable fear of islam,they dont want muslim mosques and if you ask every one of them the reason is because england is a christian country,a church which is not only fostering community cohesion but bringing those that would otherwise have become muslims into the fold is being fought,the funny thing is that i can bet you the asians are looking at that building and they will make sure they buy it and then turn it into a mosque,lets see what they ll do then.
this is not about anything but racism with a capital R and either they like it or not,the church will keep marching on,you either join the tsunami or get left behind, its a shame that the minority ethnic church in the united kingdom are not united

Am with u on this Godson.Its capital racism.If d british av their way,they will run down pst matthew completely.See what they did to john fash

what has racism got to do with the issue here? the church will expect up 1400 people every week taking up the small parking space just making thousands of pounds every week for pastor ashimolowo contributes nothing to the community and could stop people from shopping in the area. Like the post said a cinema would be better because it brings jobs. I hope they succeed with the protest.

toba:

Am with u on this Godson.Its capital racism.If d british av their way,they will run down pst matthew completely.See what they did to john fash

It won't necessarily be a bad idea if they did!

manmustwac:

what has racism got to do with the issue here? the church will expect up 1400 people every week taking up the small parking space just making thousands of pounds every week for pastor ashimolowo contributes nothing to the community and could stop people from shopping in the area. Like the post said a cinema would be better because it brings jobs. I hope they succeed with the protest.

From d tone of ur post,i can deduce that u re against d church being allowed d use of the space.Its not as if u love d community dat much,rather it cos u re not happy with any religious org due to ur unbelief.No prb lets see who will laugh last.

It is so amazing, the kind of bad belle people have for Churches. How many cathedras and churches have been bought over in the Uk.Nobody protested, some churches have been converted to nightcubs , mosques and other faiths. But a church buys a property becomes an indictement against the pastor. The gospel must move forward . We will give. Churches will continually have enough money to purchase properties for worship. If people like let them call it PLC.

Hab 2:14
For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.

toba:

From d tone of your post,i can deduce that u re against d church being allowed d use of the space.Its not as if u love d community dat much,rather it cos u re not happy with any religious org due to your unbelief.No prb lets see who will laugh last.

This is not nigeria where u have up to 10 church businesses on every road. Church that only specialize in charging the congregation heavily for the opium that it feed them with.

If churches can be converted into bars, offices and clubs, I don't see why a cinema can't be converted into a church.

I hope the protest fails - I believe it is in bad taste. The cinema couldn't afford to pay for the site and the church can, and as long as they meet with all the necessary planning regulations, then they should be allowed to do as they wish, just like any other organisation.

debosky:

If churches can be converted into bars, offices and clubs, I don't see why a cinema can't be converted into a church.

I hope the protest fails - I believe it is in bad taste. The cinema couldn't afford to pay for the site and the church can, and as long as they meet with all the necessary planning regulations, then they should be allowed to do as they wish, just like any other organisation.

GBAM! Correct. . .

How the founder of the church, or the church itself, operates, is an entirely different matter. We need to judge matters with our heads on our shoulders!

Tudór:

That FOOL wasn't sent by God but was mandated by his pocket. Thats how he was indicted for embezzling £120k pounds from the church fund and using £80k to buy a luxury porsche for his birthday present!
What the hell does a preacher need an expensive luxury porsche for??. . . .Jesus formula one grand prix

neva knew dat dude was indicted, ru u serious TUDOR or r u just joking?
IF IT IS TRUE THEN CHRISTIANS BETTER OPEN THIER EYES TO DISCERN THESE FAKE PREACHERS!

@Debosky
you didn't read the topic post properly. KICC bought the place because they made the highest bid not because the previous owners couldn't couldn't pay for the site. Another bidder that KICC beat would've changed the place to a cinema which would've been much more better to the community.

manmustwac:

@Debosky
you didn't read the topic post properly. KICC bought the place because they made the highest bid not because the previous owners couldn't couldn't pay for the site. Another bidder that KICC beat would've changed the place to a cinema which would've been much more better to the community.

Even if d cinema were to be offered free to KICC,u would still complain.U re only jealous of d fact dat its a religious org that has won d bid&u re not so passionate of d community.I will advice u join d protest since u re in UK&lets see how far u can go with ur hatred for religious org.

manmustwac:

@Debosky
you didn't read the topic post properly. KICC bought the place because they made the highest bid not because the previous owners couldn't couldn't pay for the site. Another bidder that KICC beat would've changed the place to a cinema which would've been much more better to the community.

The highest bid is synonymous as not being able to pay for the site. You cannot change the rules mid-game. If there was a decision that the building should not be used as a church at all, then such a decision should have been made before the bidding process.

Tudór:

Thats why they have a considerably better life than jesus drunk nigerians.

you need to go back in history a couple of hundred years ago and you will know why they have a better life than us,it has absolutely nothing to do with what you are inferring.
by the way i personally believe that the same reasons prosperous black people were arrested and lynched in the southern states of america during the jim crow time is the same reason white people are afraid of a single black man having the power to controll a large number of people.i can give you a couple of sound criminological theories from reputable social scientist to prove this so its not just me speakng from my rear orifice.

Tudór:

That FOOL wasn't sent by God but was mandated by his pocket. Thats how he was indicted for embezzling £120k pounds from the church fund and using £80k to buy a luxury porsche for his birthday present!
What the hell does a preacher need an expensive luxury porsche for??. . . .Jesus formula one grand prix

so you are oneof the people who subscribes to a preacher wearing the oversize ill fitting matalan suits??
you should be careful  pouring vitriol on people you hardly know anything about,but then again im not suprised seeing as you are nigerian,it is our stock in trade after all some nigerian people went to the charity commission that they will buy his properties at knock down prices when they jail him and seize his properties and the church properties.
the man worked hard to make his money,go and find out how much his book on black history made" what is wrong in being black" and the dvd series, after painstaking research spanning more than 5 years,he is also a consumate businessman in his own right dealing in properties both here and in nigeria and he is building a private university in nigeria and an estate, he has suffered while he was young so he knows the value of money and maing sure he never goes back to his begining again[
this is without looking at other best sellers he has written,you think its a fluke that he heads the fasted growing minority ethnic church in the uk?
you think nigeians are the majority there?go there and you will be mildly shocked majority of his congregation are jamaicans,zimbabweans ghananians e.t.c

manmustwac:

what has racism got to do with the issue here? the church will expect up 1400 people every week taking up the small parking space just making thousands of pounds every week for pastor ashimolowo contributes nothing to the community and could stop people from shopping in the area. Like the post said a cinema would be better because it brings jobs. I hope they succeed with the protest.

typical nigerian reply,no wonder we are the minority ethnic group who are shown the worst treatment in the united kingdom, a typical nigerian will never ever stand up for their own in uk,they will rather cross to the other side of the road if they see their fellow nigerians protesting.
people like you will come on here later and start complaining about being indiscriminately stopped and searched,about someone deriding you because you are nigerian,you dont realise that you have contributed in pulling down the people who have managed to have the ears of the powers that be in the parliament by your nigerian attitude which you brought from home,this is why you see pakistanis and indians zooming up and down in the bentleys,x5s ,mercedes because they stick together and stan up for their own the former church that the olympics committee compulsorily bought off pk.i.c.c the moslems in unity went to the local councill and bought it while we nigerians were abusing the man,same thing happened in my church here while two different nigerian churches were fighting themselves over who will buy the church the moslems came and offered the full money,if not that they didnt want to turn the church into a mosque we will have lost out on that as well .
how many nigerians apart from pastor adeboye and a few others get regularly invited to number ten,to state and discuss issues relating to minority ethnic groups?
look continue in your stance,when they destroy him and he goes back to where he is wanted in ghana then lets see who will represent your interest in that uk

GODSON2009:

typical nigerian reply,no wonder we are the minority ethnic group who are shown the worst treatment in the united kingdom, a typical nigerian will never ever stand up for their own in uk,they will rather cross to the other side of the road if they see their fellow nigerians protesting.
people like you will come on here later and start complaining about being indiscriminately stopped and searched,about someone deriding you because you are nigerian,you dont realise that you have contributed in pulling down the people who have managed to have the ears of the powers that be in the parliament by your nigerian attitude which you brought from home,this is why you see pakistanis and indians zooming up and down in the bentleys,x5s ,mercedes because they stick together and stan up for their own the former church that the olympics committee compulsorily bought off pk.i.c.c the moslems in unity went to the local councill and bought it while we nigerians were abusing the man,same thing happened in my church here while two different nigerian churches were fighting themselves over who will buy the church the moslems came and offered the full money,if not that they didnt want to turn the church into a mosque we will have lost out on that as well .
how many nigerians apart from pastor adeboye and a few others get regularly invited to number ten,to state and discuss issues relating to minority ethnic groups?
look continue in your stance,when they destroy him and he goes back to where he is wanted in ghana then lets see who will represent your interest in that uk

I was born and bred in this country ok am a brititsh nigerian, i don't remember experiencing any form of racial discrimination by the police and how is a church gonig to benefit the community? Isn't it just there to twist the scriptures in order to squeeze the maximum amount of money from its gullible followers just to enrich its selfish leaders?

this is a joke right

let me guess

1300 muslims and white rascists right

since when did the church bother anybody??

what of when they snatched waterden road

they gave us land that we cant even build on

do u see us openin unnecessary grps??

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaanyways this is a good thing

cos they are simply givin the church and ashiiiiiiii more publicity

so carry on people- notin do you jare

more publicity, more members more church sites!

GODSON2009:

you need to go back in history a couple of hundred years ago and you will know why they have a better life than us,it has absolutely nothing to do with what you are inferring.
by the way i personally believe that the same reasons prosperous black people were arrested and lynched in the southern states of america during the jim crow time is the same reason white people are afraid of a single black man having the power to controll a large number of people.i can give you a couple of sound criminological theories from reputable social scientist to prove this so its not just me speakng from my rear orifice.

You're talking absolute crap. . . They are much more developed than this shiit hole calle nigeria is that they ceased to make religion the center of their lives and started seeking answers and solutions to their problems rather than waiting for a dead jew to send help from 'heaven'.

In Nigeria churches are springing up in twos in every street corner while china factories and businesses that bring jobs and add REAL value to the society are the order of the day. And you all wonder why Nigeria is useless.

so you are oneof the people who subscribes to a preacher wearing the oversize ill fitting matalan suits??
you should be careful  pouring vitriol on people you hardly know anything about,but then again im not suprised seeing as you are nigerian,it is our stock in trade after all some nigerian people went to the charity commission that they will buy his properties at knock down prices when they jail him and seize his properties and the church properties.
the man worked hard to make his money,go and find out how much his book on black history made" what is wrong in being black" and the dvd series, after painstaking research spanning more than 5 years,he is also a consumate businessman in his own right dealing in properties both here and in nigeria and he is building a private university in nigeria and an estate, he has suffered while he was young so he knows the value of money and maing sure he never goes back to his begining again[
this is without looking at other best sellers he has written,you think its a fluke that he heads the fasted growing minority ethnic church in the uk?
you think nigeians are the majority there?go there and you will be mildly shocked majority of his congregation are jamaicans,zimbabweans ghananians e.t.ct

Oh really? He has all this money, he's a successful business man, property mogul, bestselling authour e.t.c. YET was indicted by the charity comission for embezzling £120,000 of church money using £80,000 to purchase a luxury porshe as 'birthday gift' to himself. . .what the hell is the guy- a kleptomaniac?

manmustwac:

I was born and bred in this country ok am a brititsh nigerian, i don't remember experiencing any form of racial discrimination by the police and how is a church gonig to benefit the community? Isn't it just there to twist the scriptures in order to squeeze the maximum amount of money from its gullible followers just to enrich its selfish leaders?

i am sorry sire,but this is one of the most delusional comment i have heard,the fact that you are a british nigerian does not mean anything when sociological issues are concerned.the fact that you have not experienced racial discrimination doesnt mean you should deny or pretend it doesnt exist you think i dont carry a british passport as well?? as far as the average english man or woman is concerned both of us and the nigerian on a visiting visa are one and the same thing let me give u an instance.
be honest,has a white person asked you how long you have been in the uk before?
racism and racialised words and actions has moved on from the 1980s and 1990s these days racially palatable words are used,and if you are not in tune with them then you ll probably think they are not.
the church is there for community cohesion,the thousands of young men and women you find in those churches would have otherwise be hanging out near your street snatching fones,they are not on the streets of hackney giving the minority ethnic people a bad name,if that is the only advntage surely you will agree the church is justified in being there?

Tudór:

You're talking absolute crap. . . They are much more developed than this shiit hole calle nigeria is that they ceased to make religion the center of their lives and started seeking answers and solutions to their problems rather than waiting for a dead jew to send help from 'heaven'.

i can bet my last pound that you are a british born here who has spent a little more time with the mainstream indigenous english people,socialised with them and now revel in the mistaken believe and ignorance that they dont care if you r black, lol dream on. Have you ever wondered why the asians have kept their identity intact in spite of the fact that they have been in the uk for well over 200 years? wondered why they will owe alleigiance to their own and be a support network to each other rather than the mainstream or indigenous white ,black population?
if they have ceased to make religion the centre of their lives,why are they bothered if the muslims over run the united kingdom then?? why the bnp and national front assertion that britain is a christian nation,surely they shouldnt be bothered about the dead jew going by your assertions?

Tudór:

In Nigeria churches are springing up in twos in every street corner while china factories and businesses that bring jobs and add REAL value to the society are the order of the day.

i see,how many chinese factories have been springing up in the united kingdom and wales? even though i wasnt born in this country like you,i had my first and second degrees here and my undergraduate degree was in politics and criminology so i can tell you quite a bit about sociological issues in the united kingdom.
do you even know the mainstay of the united kingdom economy?
yu are asserting that churches are the bane of nigeria's bad economy,do you know what the european union with uk as key players have contributed to the perpetual misery and poverty of african farmers??
this is why i mentioned earlier that it has nothing to do with religion, i will be waiting for you to show me how many chinese factories are in the uk and where they are, this is in order to shatter some of your illusions about the united kingdom

Tudór:

And you all wonder why Nigeria is useless.Oh really? He has all this money, he's a successful business man, property mogul, bestselling authour e.t.c. YET was indicted by the charity comission for embezzling £120,000 of church money using £80,000 to purchase a luxury porshe as 'birthday gift' to himself. . .what the hell is the guy- a kleptomaniac?

first of all,ti am sure you did not realise that the man published a double page chronological accounts of all the events between him,kicc and the charity commission as far back as 2006,ifyou ask any long term member they will tell you they got a copy, in that plain piece of paper he outllined everything that happened,where he was at fault and where the charity commission absolved him including the total funds and how everthing came to be i have a copy right here in my shoebox.
he was not indicted by the charity commission ,if he was you reckon he would have been allowed to even smell church dministration much more still heading the church? arhbishop gilbert deya is an example of a man of GOD indicted,that is why he has moved permanently to scotland.pastor ashimolowo was never indicted and what started the investigation was because the charity commission discovered a minority ethnic church with a turn over of about 12 million pounds.

when comments like these are made about minority ethnic churches by members of the minority ethnic groups in the uk in a season when black youths have been ascribed the notoriety of violence,stabbings e.t.c in the various urbane areas then it is a huge shame and no wonder black people,especially nigerians will never move past the existence and living from hand to mouth that has been the pattern of their lives in the uk,you think you are immune from any form of discrimination because you carry a british passport?you will be very suprised, wait for the new batch of legislations coming in soon including what the criminal justice system thinks of you