The announcement, to the Free Press, follows months of speculation about the project, which will bring commercial cinema back to the town.
Pat Scott and his wife Beryl, who have run the Burnham-on-Sea-based S&B Cinemas for 16 years, had planned to open the Minehead cinemas in a former discount store last Easter.
Butlin’s closed the multiplex on its site to the public in 2017 and since then, Regal Film Society showings have been Minehead’s only movie outlet.
At the moment, Minehead residents have to travel to Taunton or Bridgwater to see the latest films.
Planning permission was granted in September 2019 to turn the derelict former Lifestyle Warehouse discount store next to the Regal Theatre into a family entertainments centre housing three cinemas, one for 112 patrons and two for 60 each.
Planners were told that the building had been empty for a year and that a cinema would provide valuable entertainment amenities for the town.
Building work started in January 2020 and the project - to be known as The Avenue Cinema - was scheduled to open last Easter but most of the work was halted by the pandemic.
“We will be resuming work in September and plan to open the cinemas by February next year,” said Pat Scott, who is developing the project with his wife. The couple operate cinemas in Burnham-on-Sea and Frome, which have now re-opened after Covid restrictions were lifted, after being closed for nearly a year.
“The major structural work on the exterior of the Minehead building, including a copper-coloured roof, has been completed and now we have to do the interior work. Had it not been for the pandemic we would have been up and running by now,” Mr Scott said.
“The outside is finished and we now have to build the new interior walls for the three cinemas. I can’t wait for the work to be done and to get the place opened. It is not making money lying empty.
“We have had wonderful support from the town. People say Minehead needs a commercial cinema for both residents and tourists. It could bring new life to Minehead and I have been dreaming of doing that for a long time.”
Mr Scott added: “My plan is to bring back old-fashioned cinema service - usherettes taking people to their seats and serving ice cream - that made going to the pictures such an event when we were young.
“Our prices will be old-fashioned, too - only £4 for a night out!”
Mr Scott was originally told about the empty store by Minehead mayor Cllr Paul Bolton, who said: “Pat had been looking for a suitable building for a Minehead cinema for a long time. He fell in love with the building and thought it would be perfect for his project.
“It is brilliant for Minehead. We have needed something like this for a long time and it should have a real economic benefit and make a real difference to both residents and visitors.
“It is ridiculous that a holiday centre like Minehead shouldn’t have a cinema complex as a bad weather attraction for visitors and we are really grateful that Pat has stuck with the project through this difficult time.
“He has already done a massive amount of work on a building that was falling apart. It’s an excellent centre of town location and next to a car park. It ticks all the boxes.”
Cllr Bolton added: “On a personal note, my father was the projectionist in a London West End cinema, which was where he met my mother, who was an ice cream girl. So it’s not surprising I love the movies!”