Hi Edith
The building was in use as a bingo hall for many years.
They sold up. There were two compteting bids, a cinema group and a church.
The church won, had the higher bid. Fair enough you might say. But the church does not have planning permission for the building to be used for religious services and the building has laid unused for 5 years - apart from a few occasions when KICC have breached planning permission and used it for religous services.
The church (KICC) now want planning permission for mixed use ie religous services and community use. The vast majority of local residents see this as a fig leaf for operating it as church. If KICC get permission then the only building suitable for a cinema will be lost.
If they don't get permission (and you can help by sigining the pettition) then at some point KICC will have to sell the builidng. At which point the cinema group can buy it (thiey're still interested) and the residents in Crystal Palce can get their cinema!
Theres lots more detail on the whys and wherefores on the petiton website.