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Darwen pub must tear down covered beer garden after council says no
A covered outside drinking area at the front of a local pub could have to be pulled down after a local authority refused to give it backdated planning approval.
Paul Dean of The Alexandra Hotel in Hindle Street, Darwen, asked for retrospective permission for a raised decking area with canopy. But Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council planners rejected the bid.
The pub will not be asked to remove the addition unless it appeals the decision. It could also enter talks with planners for an amended scheme.
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The decision notice says: “Owing to the overall form of the raised decking area with canopy and the use of construction materials that relate poorly with the vernacular form of the existing building, the proposed development would not represent a good standard of or make a positive contribution to the visual amenity of the locality.”
A report by planning officer Christian Barton said: “The application site is a public house in Darwen. The site comprises of a two-storey commercial building with associated carpark and garden areas. The site is positioned off a residential road and dwellings to all sides.
“The building has ornate natural stone elevations, a slate roof and white doors and windows. The site is a drinking establishment with a large garden and external seating.
“This application seeks retrospective consent for the erection of a raised decking area with associated canopy. The canopy provides a covered outdoor seating area. The structure has been constructed from timber and it has a felt lined shallow mono-pitched roof. A timber balustrade has also been erected enclosing the raised platform
“Public comments have been received objecting as additional noise impacts may be caused. The covered decking area adjacent to the pub itself makes it more likely that customers will congregate and use this area late into the night.
“The site is an early-Victorian former manor house built in a lingering Georgian style. The building exhibits a number of attractive original architectural features. The southeast elevation, which the structure has been built from, is clearly visible.
“The structure in place appears as a temporary and unfinished installation and its overall form appears starkly at odds with the existing building. Those impacts are exacerbated by the relative prominence of the site and the structure is materially harmful to the character of this period building. The structure provides a covered space for additional external seating and such forms of development can sometimes be problematic within residential settings.”
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