Saga of the Stew is settled with plan
The saga of Shrewsbury's historic Stew building has been settled after councillors approved plans to redevelop the site.
Shropshire Council’s central planning committee unanimously granted permission for plans to convert the Stew, in Frankwell, into seven apartments with an office, spa and coffee shop.
The decision comes after a protracted planning battle for the site, with a previous proposal, that would have seen the entire building demolished, refused. Owner Gareth Leese said he was looking forward to starting on the project.
He said: “We are really pleased to move on and we are grateful for the support we have received from members and for the general support from the council to get this project over the line. We have got a firm intent to move forward with it and we hope to be starting on site this year.”
The proposal was described by councillors as “the best we are going to get”.
The building has been disused for around 15 years and a previous proposal which would have seen the entire premises demolished and rebuilt was rejected and opposed by the council. Shrewsbury Civic Society has also opposed the previous plans for redevelopment of the site.
Deteriorated
Planning committee member, Councillor Kevin Pardy, said that with no-one motivated to restore the building to its original status, Mr Leese’s plan was the best option for the future of The Stew.
He said: “Over 15 years this building has deteriorated and if this is left to continue as it has done then it will just get worse and we won’t have a Stew.”
Fellow committee member Councillor David Vasmer added: “There seem to have been significant improvements since the last scheme I looked at and it seems to me we are at a point where we need to make a decision on this and although organisations do have reservations I can see this scheme is the best we are going to get and one that should go forward.”
He added: “After today’s site visit what I saw was a building that will be much more recognisable as the Stew than it was before and not only that, it is recognisable within the modern design too. I think this is our best chance to get this sorted and have something resembling the old Stew.”
