THE applicant behind plans to convert a hotel in Weaverham into a house is still intending to do so.

Permission to change the use of Oaklands Hotel, on Millington Lane, into one dwelling, was granted by Cheshire West and Chester Council back in October 2014.

This permission was renewed in August 2017 and is due to expire in next month.

The popular local venue, which has 14 bedrooms as well as a bar and function room, was bought by David McGrogan approximately 17 years ago.

And Mr McGrogan has seen his application to the council to have this permission extended approved.

A separate application to convert the hotel into two dwellings was also given the go ahead in December last year.

Despite being situated on ‘green belt’, planning documents state that the building has a footprint of around 1,600 square metres within a site of around 1.2 hectares.

Access, car parking, other hardstanding areas and an outbuilding cover around 6200 square metres, with only 43 per cent of the site being ‘undeveloped and green’.

The hotel building has been extended ‘ad hoc’ over many years, but documents state that it is possible to reuse the property as a dwelling without any external alterations and no significant internal changes.

Much of the existing car park would also be returned to landscaped garden space rather than a tarmac car park.