New bar plan to be submitted in Castle Hill saga

Sep 2 2008 by Sam Casey, Huddersfield Daily Examiner

THERE could be key moves in the long saga of building at Castle Hill.

Architects are preparing to submit a report to Kirklees Council arguing the financial viability of plans to build a restaurant and bar at Huddersfield’s best-known landmark.

Mark Lee, of architecture firm One Seventeen AD, said the plans could be with the council within a fortnight.

He said: “Once it goes in, it will be considered by the local authority and, if they are comfortable with the financial case for the scheme, we will be asked to put forward more detailed drawings.

“The report will show how the scheme stacks up from a capital point of view and a revenue point of view.

“The council obviously want to be sure that it’s going to be successful.”

Tentative plans for a trendy wine bar, with bedrooms and visitors’ centre, were first mooted last summer.

It was the latest in a series of suggestions for Castle Hill, which has been at the centre of controversy since brothers Mick and Barry Thandi acquired the old hotel that stood there in 1998.

The brothers, operating under the business name the Thandi Partnership, had initial plans to redevelop the hotel rejected.

But in 2002 planners agreed to extension work, to include 10 bedrooms.

Demolition work started on part of the hotel the following year, but complaints that too much of the old hotel was being ripped down led to work being stopped in 2004.

In November of that year the Thandi Partnership agreed to demolish the new structure.

But it was not until June 2005 that demolition work finally finished.

Since then various ideas have been put forward for the site.

Mr Lee said that subject to the financial report and detailed drawings being approved, a formal planning application would be the next step.

He said: “If we make the submissions in the next couple of weeks, it will then depend on how long the council take to look at it.

“They might want to have the report looked at independently by a consultant, to see whether the report is good, bad or indifferent.”