Residents of Brandling Village in Jesmond have voiced concerns over proposed plans to demolish the Dun Cow pub and restaurant and replace it with 12 houses. 

In response to a planning application to Newcastle City Council by developer North East Estates, some residents have commented that parking and traffic flow in the area are already “highly problematic” and that the development could harm the “community spirit” within the neighbourhood.

The Dun Cow has been closed since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. The developer’s planning application states: “The design and appearance [of the houses] recognises that the site is in the Conservation Area, and the proposal will return the site to its historical use as terrace housing, as it was before the development of the Dun Cow in the 1930s.”

“Occupiers of adjacent buildings have been consulted on the proposals, which are currently under consideration,” a council spokesperson told JesmondLocal. “The application will go before the council’s planning committee for determination, although no date has been set.”

Objections on the city council’s website include claims that the proposal would lead to more congestion in the streets of the neighbourhood and worsen an already bad situation for car parking. One resident wrote: “The demolition of a traditional building such as the Dun Cow pub will damage the community spirit in this neighbourhood.”

Des Matheson, chair of the Brandling Village Residents Association (BVRA), says he has submitted a letter to the council planning department, opposing the demolition of the pub. “I strongly oppose this planning proposal as it stands, but am not opposed to the development of the site,” he told JesmondLocal. “My preferred option for the site would be to convert the present building into a destination, high-end restaurant which would have its own private car park.

“My second preference would be to replace it with a home or housing for the elderly, as Brandling Village could do with more of this type of accommodation.”

Matheson listed further objections to the current planning application, on the grounds of:

• Parking – “The potential of 36 more permits being issued in an area that is already very short of parking spaces,” he said.
• The height of the proposed buildings.
• The impact on traffic and road safety.
• The HMO (houses of multiple occupancy) status of the building. “Can there be categorical legislation that none of the dwellings will ever, in perpetuity, be converted to HMO properties?” he asked.
• A construction management plan. “There is no mention of how the development will be constructed,” he said.

Matheson says he has requested that he, or a representative of the BVRA, be allowed to attend and speak at the council planning committee regrading the future of the Dun Cow.

North East Estates is being represented by communications consultancy Proteus Communications Group which did not respond to JesmondLocal’s request for a comment.

Further information is available via the city council’s planning application website.