Council voices concern over pub demolition plans

The proposed demolition of the Albion Tavern on Albion Street to make way for six semi-detached houses has been objected to by members of Kenilworth Town Council.
The Albion TavernThe Albion Tavern
The Albion Tavern

Although members were not opposed to the demolition itself, they had major concerns with the design of the buildings that will be constructed in its place.

Each planned semi-detached house is three stories high and has four double bedrooms, meaning there could be eight occupants per house.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

They regarded the planned buildings as a “massive overdevelopment” which would dominate the street once built, and also thought the development was a missed opportunity to provide affordable housing in the area.

The council also thought the interior of the planned houses suggested they were not going to be family homes, but houses in multiple occupation (HMOs) for landlords to rent out, commonly known as house shares.

Landlords cannot rent rooms to tenants in an HMO that are three storeys high without a licence from Warwick District Council, and the eight potential tenants in each house means a further level of planning permission would be needed.

Although members thought the houses were next to a good bus route, the council also thought the parking provision could be completely inadequate for the amount of occupants that could live in the houses, as the pub’s car park already provides off-street parking for many people.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The council’s objection follows the discovery of bat droppings in the attic of the pub, which will require a European Protected Species Licence from Natural England before the demolition can start.

The pub was described as “run down and unloved” in the original planning application.