Smethwick desi pub could be demolished to make way for flats
A desi pub could be demolished and replaced with a block of flats under new plans.
Desi 2 in Olbury Road, Smethwick, would be knocked down to make way for 22 flats according to plans submitted by Redland Bay to Sandwell Council.
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The planning application said the pub, which was sold to the applicant in October last year, has been struggling for business following the Covid-19 pandemic.
The application said the drop in trade was from “financial and operational challenges post-Covid, due to rising costs, changing consumer habits, and a lack of on-site customer car parking.”
The ageing pub, formerly known as the Wagon and Horses before being converted into a desi pub selling Indian grills in the early 2000s, would make way for the four-and-a-half-storey building with 22 one-and-two-bed flats.
A seven-storey building with 37 flats was ruled out last summer before the application was submitted.
A statement included with the application said: “The proposed development will secure the regeneration of a vacant brownfield site within the Smethwick urban area to deliver 22 residential apartments.
“This represents a development that is consistent with the aims of local and national policy, making best use of an under-utilised site to secure the delivery of much needed dwellings in a sustainable location.”
A total of 15 parking spaces would be provided to serve the residents in the 22 flats.
The council had said that 43 parking spaces would be required if a seven-storey 37-flat was built after the developer had proposed a no-space ‘car free’ site.
While those plans were later redrawn, the council said it was willing to accept a reduction of between 60 and 80 per cent in spaces under the 22-flat application.
The developer had pointed to a proposed 11-storey tower block in Green Street, West Bromwich, which was approved by Sandwell Council with a 57 per cent cut to the usual permitted parking provision.
The council maintained that 22 spaces were required, including six visitor spaces, but it was eventually agreed that 15 spaces would be acceptable.
