Demolition Notice

Looks like the pub is about to be knocked down.  There is a notice from SBC pinned to it announcing that demolition work will commence on 8th July.

A Result

Well done the Parish Council!  Most of the fly-tipped rubbish was removed today.  There is still some left although it might just be the owners' idea of a security barrier to prevent access to the rear of the pub.  Not perfect by any means but much better than it was before.

Fly Tipping - Update

Just to let readers know that the Parish Council has taken action on the continued fly tipping on the pub site.  They have been in touch with Environmental Services at SBC who have in turn served a notice on the owners for litter and refuse.  They are also meeting with them shortly to ensure compliance.

It seems that they were due to meet this Thursday but someone cancelled the meeting which has been rescheduled for 11th March.

Thanks due to the Parish Council!  We'll keep you posted.

Happy New Year

Happy new year everyone!  We aren't sure what it will bring in terms of the pub but let's hope, whatever happens, it's in the best interests of the community.

Here We Go Again

Whether Milwood Ltd bought the pub from the previous owners or not is now immaterial.  The pub is up for sale again as a development site with planning permission.

Update

Clearly someone owns the pub!  Workmen have been around this week boarding up the windows and not before time too.  Whether this is due to council or police pressure brought about to address the use of the premises for drug related activities, we don't know.

And with regard to ownership, as far as we have been able to establish, Milwood Ltd. are now the owners of the pub having negotiated the sale directly with the previous owners.  This might explain why the "for sale" sign came down before we heard that the pub had been sold. 

What happens next, though, is still anybody's guess.  Whether Milwood will sell the site on to another party or wait until economic circumstances improve remains to be seen.  And, of course, they may well have some other motive for not taking any action for the moment.  We've written to their representative who emailed us back in June but so far we have yet to receive the courtesy of a reply.  Seems to be par for the course with email.  If you don't want to reply, just ignore it.

As usual, if you hear of any other developments do let us know.

Curious & Curiouser

You may have seen the article in tonight's Sentinel reporting that Milwood Ltd. no longer intend to develop the pub site.  The article, however, does not say what the company plan to do with it.  We have written to the Milwood representative who contacted The Blog back in June and will let you know as soon as we hear something.

In the meantime, if you are able to shed any further light on the situation please get in touch.

Still No News

What more can we add?  We still haven't heard anything.  Has there been a change of plan?  Has the money dried up?  Or have the new owners got other irons in the fire which are taking priority?

Communication from the New Owners

So now we know.  The pub has definitely been sold and the new owners intend to submit a new planning application.  The pub has been bought by Stoke-on-Trent based Milwood Ltd and The Blog has received the following email from their representative.  Without making any judgement either way, it has to be said that the email in itself represents a step in the right direction amounting to 100% more communication than we received from the previous owners!  Anyway, here is the text of the email.  All comments (printable ones only please!) welcome.

"Dear All,

I became aware of your Blog with regard to the above property, and would like to make an entry into the same.

Given the previous Planning Applications, Ward Councillor and local community objection and involvement etc, I felt it only right and proper to contact you with regard to the same.

I will also be sending an email to all three of the Ward Councillors, to advise them accordingly.

We, being Milwood Ltd, are proposing to re-develop the above property, and will shortly be submitting a Planning Application to Stafford Borough Council for that purpose.

As you are aware, the property received a Planning Permission (10/14268/FUL) on the 15^th December 2010 for the development of seven detached dwellings, being made up of two 2 storey dwellings and five 2 ½ storey dwellings.

Our proposal is identical to that of the previous Planning Permission, being for seven detached dwellings, excepting that all of our dwellings will be traditional 2 storey.

Unlike the previously approved Housetypes, that were simply created to gain a Planning Permission, ours are tried and tested formal Housetypes that offer, in my view, much greater aesthetic and architectural merit.

Furthermore, the proposed layout does also offer greater merit in these regards also.

We will maintain a separation distance from the back of Footpath to the two frontage dwellings of circa 4 to 5 metres.

A full Habitat Survey has been undertaken to quantify the question of the Bats and Badgers specifically, which I know was a previous concern.

The existing trees will be maintained, as per the previous Planning Permission.

I would hope that this proposal will be received positively, given that firstly, a Planning Permission already exists to re-develop this site, and secondly, that, in our view, our proposal does represent an improvement over that already approved, which could be implemented at anytime.

The above of course is a summary, and if I can be of any further assistance at this time, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Many thanks.

Kind Regards,"

There you  have it.  We have printed the email verbatim (apart from the signatory which we have omitted for privacy reasons).  What do you think?

Curiouser and Curiouser

We're hearing, once more on the grapevine, that the pub might not have been sold after all (the source is a very reliable one). 

There was some activity on the site a few weeks ago involving the Fire Brigade and other visitors which we took to be a precursor to a further planning application or even demolition but now we are hearing that the sale might not have happened.

As usual, we'll let you know when we hear more.

Pub Sold?

We've just heard on the "grapevine" that the George & Dragon site has now been sold.  This is, of course, as yet unconfirmed but the "for sale" sign has now been taken down so it sounds like a pretty good bet to us.

What happens next?  We think that it is more than likely that another planning application will be submitted based on an altogether different design.  Whether or not any fresh proposals will be good or bad news for residents remains to be seen.  However, we  very much suspect that it will be a case of the latter.  If it is, then The Blog will continue to keep you informed and no doubt will we be meeting again "on the doorstep" in the not too distant future!

By the way, some unfinished business concerning the last Planning Committee meeting.   We don't believe the Development Control department correctly recorded what was agreed at the meeting regarding the need for bat and badger surveys.  We took this up with Fulford Parish Council who wrote in to SBC.  In our view, the response showed a complete lack of understanding of the situation and we have asked one of our Borough Councillors to progress the matter.   Given that the pub may now have been sold, this is probably irrelevant - for the time being at least.

As usual, we'll keep you posted.

Planning Committee Decision

Here's the text of the Planning Committee's decision regarding the change of wording to condition 19.  We are very concerned that there is no mention of the badger survey which was recommended by SWT and brought to the Committee's attention by us in our presentation.  We are, however, not surprised.  The matter was overlooked (cynics might say conveniently) by the Development Control Department representative when summing up - despite our gesticulations.

Fear not.  SWT are already aware of the situation and we shall be following it up ourselves.

As this is likely to be the last post before Christmas (sorry, no pun intended!), we'd like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year.

A Result? In a Manner of Speaking

A very brief post (more later) to let you know what happened at tonight's Planning Committee meeting at which the latest amendment was discussed.

The upshot is that the owners cannot demolish the pub until another bat survey has been undertaken at a time when those delightful creatures are likely to be active.  As and when they do knock down the building, the owners will be required to remove all rubble and other mess and erect fencing to prevent illegal use of the site.

Hopefully, this will go some way to alleviating some of the concerns expressed by residents in the various letters sent in to SBC.

We'll post again later (it's been a long evening) when we see the precise wording of the Committee's decision.

Planning Committee Meeting

The latest planning application, 11/16147/FUL, goes before SBC's Planning Committee on Wednesday 14th December 2011 starting at 6.30pm.  We have offered to speak on behalf of the community objecting to the application.  Of course, if anyone else wants to do this they are perfectly entitled to do so in which case contact committeeservices@staffordbc.gov.uk.

As with the previous applications, it is always good to have supporters along.  Early indications are that a number of residents will be attending.  Do feel free to join us.  The more the merrier!  The venue is as follows:

Craddock Room
Civic Suite
Civic Centre
Riverside
Stafford.

We hope to see you there!

By the way, will the author of the comment on the previous post ("Amended Application") please get in touch regarding our request for more information. 

Amended Application

Just to bring you all up to date with the situation, we have been advised that all letters sent in so far will be taken into consideration.  That doesn't mean that you shouldn't write in again if you feel strongly enough about it especially given that Highways are no longer objecting to change of wording.  This in itself is a bit worrying as all manner of unsafe practices might now begin to emerge on the site once the pub has gone.

The application has definitely been called in and we are currently preparing a case to take before the Planning Committee.  Let's trust that we have more luck than last time.  Do email us with any points you think are relevant.

New Planning Application: Amendment

We'd been expecting an amendment to the planning application for a week or so and now it has finally come through.  We've now received notification from SBC that the amendment has been changed to read: "... before the proposed development commences but excluding demolition work."

As we suggested in an earlier post, it looks very much like the owners want to knock the pub down to make the site easier to sell but don't want to have to pay for any of the work required to comply with the conditions of the planning permission.  And that's what the amendment seems to be all about.

We are still trying to find out whether or not we will have to write in all over again or whether existing letters still count (we suspect the latter).  Whatever the case, our view remains the same as before.  The owners started all of this and they should finish it by developing the site in accordance with the planning permission they have been granted.

If the pub is demolished, the site may remain undeveloped for some considerable length of time.  Not wishing to worry anyone unduly but here are some of the implications:

• Threat of occupation by travellers
• Impact of an unsightly demolition site on the local area
• Potential health and safety issues

Our advice is to object again even if you have already done so.  We'll let you know as soon as we learn anything more.

Closing date for objections is now 11 December 2011.
Application ref: 11/16147/FUL
Case officer: Alan Lynch
Telephone no. 01785 649533

Here's a copy of the most recent letter from SBC.

More on the New Planning Application

We think we've got our heads around this one now thanks to feedback from friends of The Blog and one of our Borough Councillors.

Although the proposed amendment to the wording is slight, the implications are potentially far-reaching.  Basically, it means that, if approved, the owners could demolish the pub and sell off the site either as a job lot or individual plots without having to spend money on designing the road, street lighting and drainage infrastructure that the planning permission presently requires them to do before any development activity takes place.

What's more (and this is our assumption) with the pub demolished, the land could remain derelict until such time that it is sold off which might take some considerable time.   If you think the place looks unsightly now, imagine what it would look like with the pub gone and no one being held responsible for making sure that it looks neat, tidy and in good order.  Given what's happened to the site of the former Smithfield pub in Blythe Bridge, this situation could last for quite a while.  Years, even.

Our view is that since the owners started all of this, designed the development and produced the plans they should be responsible for discharging all and any of their obligations in accordance with the required standards to the satisfaction of the designated authorities as stated in their planning permission.

If you agree, do make your feelings known by posting an objection on the SBC website or by writing to them.  Again, the details are:

Online: www.staffordbc.gov.uk/planning

Post:
Mr A. Lynch
Planning Services
Stafford Borough Council
Civic Centre
Riverside
Stafford
ST16 3AQ

Don't forget to mention the planning application reference, 11/16147/FUL

New Planning Application

OK, we've now had the opportunity to study the new application in more detail.  Here is the gist of it.

The decision to approve the last application was granted subject to a number of conditions being met one of which required the owners to submit full details of road construction, street lighting and drainage and that these should be acceptable to the Local Planning Authority.

The key point is that this should be done BEFORE THE PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT COMMENCES. The owners now want to change the wording so that they don't have to do this until PRIOR TO BUILDING THE FIRST DWELLING.

As with most of the proposals concerning with this project, this application gives us cause for concern.  It means, for example, that the owners could undertake all manner of construction/ deconstruction activities without having acceptable plans in place for road construction, street lighting and drainage.  And who knows how long it would take for them to get around to actually building the first property.  Given their track record so far, it could take some years.

For your convenience, we've attached the relevant documentation:  letter from SBC in case you haven't seen it and a copy of the relevant part of the original decision notice which SBC omitted to enclose with their covering letter.

The section in question is paragraph 19.  They want to change the wording from "Before the proposed development commences" to "Prior to the erection of the first dwelling".

Some good news.  The Parish Council has already discussed the matter and sent in an objection on the grounds that the original wording is the best way of ensuring that the correct work is undertaken.

Closing date for comments is 11th November and you can do it online at www.staffordbc.gov.uk/planning or by letter to:

Mr A. Lynch
Planning Services
Stafford Borough Council
Civic Centre
Riverside
Stafford
ST16 3AQ

Don't forget to mention the planning application reference, 11/16147/FUL

Here We Go One More Time

It had to come and now it has: another planning application.  We have just received notification of it but have not yet checked out the details.  More of that in a later post.  For now, if you want to take a look at it, the application reference is 11/16147/FUL.

View online at the usual site www.staffordbc.gov.uk/ planning but we've had problems with this tonight so you might have to try www.staffordbc.gov.uk and navigate to the planning portal from there.

New Local Plan

Not really a G&D issue, this, but one which might have similar implications for the future.  You may know from the Parish Newsletter about the draft Local Development Framework which is currently out for review.

If you want to find out what they have in store for us, it might be a good idea to take a look at it!  There's some more about it on the Voice of Rough Close website.  We'd sooner restrict The Blog to G&D matters so click here to access relevant web page.