Chester's only remaining cinema will flicker out of existence in 18 days' time to make way for a new 24-hour supermarket.

Cineworld on the Greyhound Retail Park will close its doors on Thursday, October 10.

And staff at the nearby Ten Pin Bowling alley claim their base will close at the beginning of November although this is yet to be confirmed.

Cineworld spokeswoman Lindsey Rossell said: “We can confirm that Chester Cineworld will close on October 10. We apologise for any inconvenience caused to our customers."

In August, Land Securities secured permission at the site for a supermarket, rumoured to be an Asda, which is expected to create 173 new jobs.

But the scheme will involve the demolition of Cineworld and the adjacent bowling alley unit will be extended to create the new store, a home shopping unit and café.

Ward councillor Reg Jones supported the principle of development but raised concerns about the loss of leisure facilities when he addressed the planning committee.

He said: “We are changing the character and nature of the Greyhound Park – the loss of the cinema and the bowling alley.

"While I accept we can’t force commercial ventures to stay there, we have made no provision for leisure facilities. We have a growing reputation as a cultural desert as we flip flop from one cultural aspiration to another.

“There are unintended consequences to this and that will be increases in anti-social behaviour. Our young people need facilities and they are being denied them.”

Cineworld will open an 11 screen cinema within a £13m extension at Broughton Shopping Park due for completion in 2015. And the company already planned to close its Chester multiplex before the supermarket plan emerged.

Chester’s only city centre cinema closed in June 2007 but the council's proposed theatre project, based on the former Odeon, does include a single screen cinema although it is not due to open until 2016.

There are also plans for an eight screen cinema within the long-awaited £300m Northgate Development regeneration scheme but this would not be until 2018 at the earliest.

Meanwhile, staff at the Ten Pin Bowling alley have told The Chronicle a staff meeting involving human resources took place on Thursday and the outlet will close on November 3, with the loss of about 20 jobs.

No one from the company has so far been available to comment.