Two pubs that had been serving customers for 150 years in coastal towns could vanish forever if plans to transform them are approved.
The Tramway in Gorleston is set to be turned into an Indian restaurant while developers want to turn the Great Eastern in Great Yarmouth into flats.
It follows both pubs shutting to customers in the last three years.
The bids come amid a rapid decline nationwide in the number of pubs in the country, with 80 closing a month according to government figures.
Great Yarmouth Borough Council planning committee will meet next week to discuss the proposals, with both schemes recommended for approval by officers.
TRAMWAY
The Tramway in Lowestoft Road - named after the horse-drawn tramway that linked Yarmouth to its southern neighbour - had been visited by customers since it opened in 1875.
Sixty years later the route closed but its legacy lives on through the pub.
In 2021, the pub was stripped of its 4am licence after video evidence backed up complaints from neighbours of late night noise and revelry spilling out onto the streets.
Now the owners of the site want to transform it into an Indian restaurant and takeaway.
Great Yarmouth council officials have decided that the loss of the pub is acceptable as the community is still "well-served" by the nearby Feathers.
It is hoped turning the pub into a restaurant will keep people visiting the high street.
GREAT EASTERN
The Great Eastern in Nelson Road Central is well-known in the town due to its traditional façade with colourful wooden panelling.
It is thought to have been built in 1870 and was in business for more than 150 years, later becoming known as 'the party pub', until it shut in February this year.
The owners blamed electrical issues for closing its doors.
According to officers, the pub is in a poor condition and it requires £30,000 in repairs to bring it back into use.
Developers now want to turn it into a block of four one-bed flats.
Despite being threatened with losing their local, people living nearby have not objected to the plans.
Fortunately for pubgoers, the Albion, located opposite, is still open.
Officers have recommended the scheme is approved, with the final decision to be made by councillors on September 18.
THE WINNERS
Changes to a third former pub are also due to go before the planning committee next week.
The former Winners Public House in South Beach Parade in Yarmouth could be turned into three holiday lets and also a storage space if plans are approved.
Officers have recommended councillors give the green light for the scheme, believing it is "not necessary" to retain the pub as a community asset.
THE DEATH OF PUBS
The loss of the Tramway and Great Eastern as pubs is reflective of a national trend.
Government figures show about 80 pubs a month are vanishing across the country, with nearly 500 calling last orders between April 2023 and March 2024.
Other well-known pubs that have been lost in the area include the Iron Duke, which is being restored by the team behind Zak's - a chain of American-themed restaurants in Norfolk.
Peggotty's, in King Street in the town, also shut recently after a licence review forced it to stop serving customers at 1am rather than their previous 4am closing time.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel