Ready to restore cottages' facade

The developer who was refused permission to demolish the remaining section of Newark’s Robin Hood Hotel is planning to restore the facade.

M. F. Strawson Ltd is preparing a proposal, due to be submitted in early April, and hopes to gain the support of Newark and Sherwood District Council and English Heritage in completing the work.

The proposal would seek to retain as much of the original building as practical, including the front elevation on to Lombard Street and the gable fronting Beaumond Cross.

It will also seek to reuse salvaged materials.

The proposal comes after district planners, in November, refused listed building consent to knock down the three cottages, once part of the hotel, fronting Lombard Street. Despite officers recommending demolition, members voted for retention.

An independent assessment said it would cost £719,250 to retain the cottages or £611,200 to retain only the facade.

Both figures were far more than the £150,000 set aside by Strawsons, bringing into question the financially viability of the scheme.

Mr Niel Strawson, of M. F. Strawson Ltd, said: “We have listened to members of the planning committee and hope that the district council and English Heritage will support the latest proposals in order to ensure that the Potterdyke scheme can finally be completed.

“We are committed to delivering this scheme but meeting the aspirations of the planning committee is difficult. There has been no injection of cash to fund the retention of the cottages. We simply have to mitigate our losses and move forward.”

Meanwhile, the development’s pedestrian walkway linking Asda to Cartergate is due to be finished by early May.

The Asda store, which created 300 jobs, is the centrepiece of the £50m Potterdyke redevelopment, which also included a new health centre and doctors’ surgery.

Nationally, it is one of only two shopping centre schemes set for completion in 2012 because of the recession.