Work on a new art house cinema is set to get moving again after being stalled by a number of delays, now that a new contractor will take over the so called 'jinxed' project.

Construction work on the new arthouse cinema on Lower Merchants Road, Galway is expected to restart within the next week.

A spokesperson has said that an announcement will be made in the next few days regarding the new contractor.

The closing date for selecting the new contractor was September 20, and negotiations are taking place with the successful bidder at the moment.

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With a budget of €6.36m the cinema will be three storeys in height, with six storeys facing Spanish Parade – it will include a box office, bookshop, bar and offices.

It is understood that the project will take around 14 months to complete and should now be ready in time for Christmas 2012.

Work halted on the site in June 2010 when structural damage was caused to an adjoining house. Building project backers subsequently reached an agreement to demolish the house and replace it with a new five-bed house but it was feared that an additional €1m would have to be added to the project.

Last May, receivers were appointed by ACC Bank to Cordil Construction, which had been contracted to build the 340-seat cinema- now a new contractor will take on the job.

(LB/BMcC)