‘SAVE OUR PUBS’
URGENT PLEA TO PROTECT CITY’S ICONIC PUBS AS PLANS EMERGE FOR TWO MORE TO BE REPLACED WITH NEW HOMES:
A GROUP of councillors have called for the council to start protecting Cardiff’s pubs against property developers.
This week, councillors who sit on the planning committee will be recommended to approve The Gower pub being demolished and homes built on the land in Cathays.
They will also be asked to approve new flats being built on the piece of land where the Duke of Clarence once stood in Canton.
It is the latest pub set for redevelopment after a spate of closures of traditional pubs in the city.
Two high-profile examples were The Wharf and The Poets Corner.
Both were closed and then demolished, planning applications for flats then followed.
Developers originally said that The Gower Pub was going to be turned into 24 flats. Those plans were turned down by councillors, and developers lost an appeal.
Then, in December 2016 the architects released new images of plans for traditional terraced homes.
They said they had worked on the concerns expressed to reproduce plans.
Their latest application is for the existing pub to be demolished and nine three-bed homes and one twobed home to be built in its place.
There have been objections about the loss of the existing building and the use of slate rather than brick on the outside of two of the planned homes.
No objections from the ward councillors were received, but ward councillors Chris Weaver, Norma Mackie and Sarah Merry have submitted a later letter for consideration.
It says that the trio would have preferred to keep the facade of the pub at the least.
Their letter reads: “This development raises the question as to whether the council should, going forward, be more proactive in giving local listing to our old pubs which are increasingly under pressure due to the value of land for development.
“We feel that this current application is an improvement on the previous application and recognise the work that the developers did engaging with the community.
“The pre-planning consultation was meaningful and comments from residents incorporated into the plans, including a shift from apartments to houses which are much more in keeping with the buildings in the street, although there is a concern about the slate rather than brick facing of two of the units.
“We do remain concerned about the increased pressure on parking in the area. Parking problems have increased significantly since the development of flats on Monthermer Road. At the very least there needs to be a review of residents’ parking in the area.”
Camra has previously said that it would urge all pub-owning companies to sell pubs on as “going concerns”, and not for property deals.
A spokesman previously said: “With 29 pubs a week closing, it’s becoming increasingly apparent that pubs are seen as soft targets for property developers, keen to use loopholes in planning law which allow them to acquire and change the use of a pub, or demolish it completely, with no reference to the communities the pubs serve, or local planning authorities.
“Camra would urge the Government to tighten up planning protection for pubs, which are vital community assets.”
Cerys Furlong is part of a family team who have brought life back to historic city pubs.
They first set up The Lansdowne and then refurbished The Grange.
She believes pubs should be
given protection.
“They should be protected both as a community asset and as part of the history of the area but also, in the case of The Gower, it’s a lovely building.
“It has beautiful oak panels inside and a function room.
“It’s going to be replaced by not particularly high quality housing and we’ll lose a lovely building from the landscape.
“It seems that other cities do it better in terms of protecting their spaces.”
She said with her pubs, they have made them the heart of the community, taking part in local events and speaking to residents about what they want to see there.
“People always say you don’t go into running a pub to be a millionaire but you can make a viable business out of it,” she said.