A newly formed community campaign, backed by Camra and local councillors, has been launched to save The Duchess pub in Scarborough from being converted into flats.
A community campaign to reopen a pub that is set to be converted into flats has been launched in a North Yorkshire resort.
A newly created group trying to stop the Duchess pub near Scarborough hospital from being turned into flats is hoping to “fire up” the local community to garner support for its campaign.
Located at 152 Hovingham Drive, the pub could be converted into three flats if RPC Scarborough Ltd’s proposal is approved by North Yorkshire Council.
The Campaign for Real Ale (Camra) has voiced “strong support for the initiative”, noting that suburban “estate locals” are under increasing pressure from property developers.
A cross-party group of town councillors and Camra members are coordinating the campaign, which has also received backing from the Campaign for Protection of Pubs, which is understood to be coordinating a formal response to the current development plans.
Cllr Chris Clark, a member of Scarborough Town Council, said:
“The comments we have gathered clearly show that the pub has great affection in the area, and what we seek to do is to really liven the community up.
“We also want to identify a group of individuals who were believed to be organising or seeking to have discussions about a buyout of the pub.
“We’d like to come and meet up with them at some point, but we don’t know who they are.”
Located between Scarborough Hospital, the Woodlands Estate, and the Woodlands Crematorium, The Duchess has historically served as a “vital social anchor”, according to campaigners.
The group said it is aiming to restore the venue as a “multi-functional hub capable of hosting everything from post-funeral gatherings and musical nights to televised sports and family dining”.
Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS), Cllr Clark added:
“We very much look forward to working with the Hovingham Drive community and the people who work at Scarborough Hospital.
“We also look very much to working with those who may organise events at the crematorium to encourage more groups to support the pub at the point when, and if, we get the pub reopened.”
In plans submitted to the council, the applicant said that the conversion of the pub would have positive impacts, including a reduction in noise associated with pub operations, reduced evening and late-night activity, and added that the building would continue to be occupied and maintained.
North Yorkshire Council has not set a date for deciding on the scheme.
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