Village to keep pub as homes bid rejected
A village pub will not be converted into homes – and developers have been urged to try and make it the heart of the community once more.
Developers wanted to turn the Four Crosses Inn in Four Crosses, between Oswestry and Welshpool, into two cottages and a development of three homes.
But members of Powys County Council's planning committee yesterday refused the application, saying more should be done to ensure it stays as a pub.
Carol Davies, a local resident who spoke at yesterday's meeting, said with the right landlord in place the pub could become the centre of the village.
She added: "This pub should be able to make someone a living. The three pubs in nearby Llanymynech do well, as does the Green Inn in Llangedwyn.
"It is in the perfect place on one of the busiest junctions in Mid Wales. It even had good pedestrian access."
A petition signed by 586 people calling on it to remain as a pub had been handed in to the council at an earlier date.
But Rob Mills, on behalf of Buckinghamshire-based developers Eaglescourt, said the pub had been making a loss for 10 years.
He said: "It is currently closed. Our view is that the pub was on sale at a fair market price for 18 months.
"There was no interest. The previous landlords tried to rejuvenate it with a series of events and specials, but they were all unsuccessful.
"It has been making a loss for 10 years."
Councillor Linda Corfield said: "The price of the pub dropped dramatically when the developers were trying to sell it.
"It went from £275,000 to £140,000 and they have made a real effort to keep it as a pub.
"But I sympathise with the residents, nobody wants to lose their pub."
Councillors voted 7-6 in favour of refusing the plans. There were three abstentions.
