Demolished pub is open again after six years
AS the nation’s pubs welcome back drinkers today after months of closure, this boozer will open up for the first time in six years following a complete rebuild.
The Carlton Tavern, in Maida Vale, west London, was demolished in 2015 by a developer who wanted to turn it into flats.
But a judge later ordered it to be rebuilt “brick by brick” following a campaign by locals.
The 100-year-old pub was being considered for Grade-II listed status when it was torn down without planning permission. Over its long history, the watering hole had once survived German bombs during the Blitz.
After the controversial demolition,Westminster Council got a court injunction to stop the developers turning it into a block of 10 flats.
Three months after it was reduced to rubble, the council served an enforcement order requiring the pub to be rebuilt back to its original state.
After years of failed appeals and attempts by the property developers to still build some flats, the Carlton will finally reopen today.
New leaseholders Tom Rees and Ben Martin have been working tirelessly to restore the pub.
Tom, 34, said: “We’ve already had a very compressed time scale. It’s gone absolutely crazy.We are fully booked for the next two weeks and our website isn’t even up yet.”
Beer gardens open across the country today following the latest easing of Covid restrictions.