'Appaling eyesore' pub should be placed in council's hand
A derelict pub should be placed in the hands of Dudley Council according to its leader, who wants a quick resolution to the 'appalling eyesore'.
The King Arthur pub, at a gateway to Dudley on the Birmingham New Road, has suffered vandalism and fire damage since closing two years ago.
See also: Planners refuse to back plans to demolish landmark Black Country pub.
Plans to replace it with a supermarket and create 40 jobs were snubbed by councillors two weeks ago, who wanted more detail on the proposed store design.
It is the second failed attempt to redevelop the site after approved plans last year for a hotel never got off the ground.
Today, leader David Sparks called for more powers to be given to the council to intervene and take the pub to redevelop it.
See also: Fresh calls to save landmark Dudley pub from bulldozer.
He said there should be other ways for the council to take over the site other than use a compulsory purchase order, which can be a lengthy and costly legal process.
Councillor Sparks said: "The King Arthur pub is an appalling eyesore.
"I hope it gets sorted quickly - my view would be that the local authority should be granted either the resources or the powers to intervene in locations like that so that if someone else isn't going to develop it, we could develop it."
He said the council was also facing a similar 'appalling situation' in Colley Gate, Cradley.
See also: Break-in sparks call for use of former pub car park in Dudley.
He said: "We have an absentee landlord (in Cradley) who has has blighted the area, we are trying to sort it out."
The King Arthur pub was overlooked by English Heritage for listed building status last year.
The body claimed the pub's architectural importance had been damaged by fire.
Despite this, the council has an order, called an Article 4 Direction, which stops it being demolished without permission from members.
The pub was built in 1939 as a road-house on the old Wolverhampton to Birmingham dual carriageway.
The new owners told councillors that Aldi was ready to buy the site if permission was given for a store development.
But councillors refused the application, but because there was no design of what the proposed store would look like.
George Blackham, of the Sedgley Local History Society, said the pub should be preserved. He said: "My opinion has not changed, I think the pub building should be saved and turned into apartments.
"It is a striking example of the 1930s road house pubs."
Meanwhile, council officers are working with members of Cradley Action Group to regeneration the rundown shopping parade in Colley Gate.
The council has marketed the site for redevelopment and has received four bids, including a proposal for a supermarket.
