No 4 Old Street has had more changes of use than many buildings in the town centre. One the edge of the primary shopping area, just off the primary pedestrian thoroughfare from Tower Street to King Street, over the last decade or so the building has been a restaurant, a bookshop, a tattoo parlour, an off license, a florist, a micro-bar and a cocktail bar. The latest proposal from Roger Bowles is to convert the property into a micro pub which plans suggest will be called the Old Street Tavern.
Work on the property has been underway for some while but the next steps require listed building consent as it is Grade II listed (22/03078/LBC).
The work applied for involves creating a new access to the barrel-roofed cellar from inside the building and repainting of the frontage, the lower storey of which will be dark grey or black. A hanging sign will advertise the tavern. Railings will be installed on the front steps and a small bench will be attached to the front of the building.
I can see no objections to this proposal, with the possible exception of the front bench and hanging sign. We need to see more details of the bench to ensure it is in character. A conventional bench may be more appropriate. The hanging sign would be 0.9m by 1.2m (3’ by 4’), which I think is on the large side for its location. It perhaps needs to be 25% smaller.