Former pub could be turned into home with two more in car park

A FORMER pub in Satwell could be converted into a house with two new properties built alongside.

Hare Construction, of Woodburn Green, wants to turn the Lamb into a three-bedroom home and build a pair of detached houses on a triangular piece of land that is part of the pub’s former car park.

The pub, which closed in 2011, has a complex planning history.

A planning statement by the Atlas Planning Group says the redevelopment would respect the character and appearance of the area and provide homes of high quality with adequate parking space and a safe shared access.

It says: “All the dwellings would exceed the minimum space standards, while providing comfortable and functional internal layouts.

“Externally, the proposed development would enact minor changes to the appearance of the pub, partly to accommodate the revised internal layout and partly to tie the appearance of the converted building into that of the proposed detached units.

“It would greatly improve the appearance of the site and be attractive in its own right.” Atlas says the pub had a “troubled” financial history with several operators unable to make it viable.

It continues: “The applicants contend that the viability situation has only worsened in the years following the Lamb’s closure nine years ago and it remains unsuitable for use as a public house.”

A viability report by Kevin Marsh, director and head of leisure at Savills, says: “The pub has had a poor trading record, failing at least twice between 2009 and 2011, despite having been operated by well-known and respected people.

“The fact that the business ultimately failed is, in my opinion, due to the small scale of the premises, its remote location with no passing trade, a large number of alternative pubs in the area and poor quality owner/tenant living accommodation.

“Substantial capital of around £200,000 needs to be invested in the Lamb (excluding immediate structural/external fabric repairs and sewage treatment) in the short term. I consider such an investment extremely risky.

“The business that could be generated would still not provide a sufficient income for an operator to cover any mortgage or rent commitments in either the short or medium term.”

The property was offered for sale by specialist pub agents Christie & Co in March last year for almost £1 million but failed to attract interest from the pub trade.

It was put on the market by former car dealer Graham Granaski, who had bought the pub in 2013 from the previous owners, who included TV chef Antony Worrall Thompson, proprietor of the Greyhound in Peppard.

The pub had been closed after two former owners went bankrupt and did not re-open.

When Mr Granaski bought the pub it had fallen into disrepair and he submitted several planning applications for building work, including new rooms to let, a new kitchen and a landlord’s flat.

These were all refused permission by South Oxfordshire District Council, the planning authority, and then on appeal too.

In 2013, the council investigated claims by residents that Mr Granaski was using the pub car park to store and sell used cars under the name Highland Cars.

He said he needed somewhere to store and sell the cars after selling his old business premises in order to buy the pub.

When the council began enforcement action, Mr Granaski stopped selling cars from the site.

However, the council then began investigating claims that he was using the pub as an unauthorised dwelling.

In 2015, Mr Granaski applied for planning permission to change the use of the property to residential, saying he could not run the pub as a viable business without substantial changes.

This application was refused and when he appealed, the planning inspector supported the council’s decision, saying the plans would result in the “unacceptable loss of an essential community facility”.

In January 2018 Mr Granaski was ordered to stop living at the premises.

The district council is due to make a decision on Hare Construction’s application by January 28.