A pub has submitted fresh plans to expand into a hotel after original proposals were refused over concerns it would negatively impact the countryside setting.
Ye Olde Leathern Bottel on Barkham Road had plans to expand to provide 13 beds to customers refused by Wokingham Borough Council in August.
Pub bosses wanted to majorly renovate the kitchen and dining area of the pub and expand its first floor to provide five rooms.
They also wanted to create eight more rooms in a separate building outside of the existing pub.
READ MORE: Bracknell's The Spud Wagon confirms new 'mystery' location
But this was rejected by Wokingham Borough Council over concerns it would have a negative impact on the character and appearance on the countryside area.
The authority also took issue with the plans as it would ‘erode’ the area between Barkham and Wokingham.
Not enough parking had been planned for the increased number of cars from visitors, the council also said.
Newer plans that have now been submitted by Monoporo Limited include a lower number of rooms for potential occupants.
While the same loft conversion has been proposed, applicants are no longer seeking to build a new building outside of the pub.
READ MORE: Heatherwood Hospital rated best elective care centre
This brings the total number of rooms down to just five and would all be contained in the existing building.
Pegasus Group, on behalf of the applicants, said that this will ‘support the pub’s offering by providing self-contained overnight accommodation for short leisure and business trips in a semi-rural setting but with excellent access to Wokingham Town Centre and the motorway network’.
Rooms offered will have ‘an intimate feel’ and be ‘reflective of its country pub heritage’, according to plans.
But plans to create an access point to the west of the site off Barkham Road have sparked criticism from neighbours.
Those who objected to original plans worried that a hotel would worsen traffic on surrounding roads.
Car parking spaces would reduce from 60 to 46, which some argued was ‘counter intuitive’ with the creation of the hotel.
READ MORE: Readers react to Dunelm arrival to The Lexicon
But Pegasus Group said the design of the highway access and car parking had been ‘carefully planned to ensure that the site operates safely’.
Many of the same objectors claim that no improvements have been made to the fresh plans.
One wrote that he considered the proposal to ‘threaten the heritage of Ye Olde Leathern Bottel, the surrounding environment and the local community’.
The application has been validated by Wokingham Borough Council and a decision is yet to be made.
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 here