A pub overlooking the sea in Cornwall could be demolished in order for six flats to be built.

Planning consultants have submitted a pre-application enquiry on behalf of the owner of the Atlantic Inn at Porthleven, P Roger, asking for advice from Cornwall Council about the possibility of knocking down the existing pub building and in its place building six two-bedroom units.

Murray Planning Associates said: "The proposed development involves the demolition of the existing public house, and the redevelopment of the site with a bespoke development of six dwellings, each providing two bedrooms.

"The separate parcel of land that currently provides parking for the public house would provide the necessary parking for the residential development."

They said the ground floor would see three units, the first floor two units – plus part of the third unit on the ground floor unit – and a second floor would provide a single unit.

Access to the site would be to the west, with a path leading to a communal lobby area and then a staircase to access the upper two floors. The rear courtyard area would become a private amenity area for at least one of the new dwellings.

 

How the Atlantic Inn looks now

How the Atlantic Inn looks now

 

Halo Architects Ltd, also acting on behalf of the owner, who is different to the landlords who lease the building, has drawn up plans of how the new apartment building could look.

The firm said: "The inn presents a slightly confusing picture as it appears that the original building has been added to and extended several times, to both the rear and the side, becoming a cocktail of building forms and volumes that have been pushed together, whose combined footprint now occupies the majority of the site.

"There is little of merit in the existing building, therefore the proposal seeks to replace this with a new building which will provide a more cohesive and considered building form, one that can positively contribute to the conservation area."

A planning application for a house to be built on the pub's car park was previously refused by Cornwall Council in October 2018, with an appeal being dismissed in August 2019 on the grounds of the impact on the Conservation Area and Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and on an adjoining property.

More recently, part of the car park was given permission for use as a beer garden and outdoor seating area for the pub.

The pre-planning application can be seen on Cornwall Council's planning website, under application number PA21/02723/PREAPP.

Even if the proposal is supported by planning officers, a full planning application would have to be made and granted before any work could be carried out.