Plans to convert the former Eagle Inn pub in Ramsgate into a 14-bed hotel have been submitted to Thanet council.
The application, made by Williams Group UK Ltd, will involve demolition of the rear extensions to be replaced by new part two and part three storey extensions.
The former High Street pub, which has been empty for several years, was damaged by fire during the 1980s. Repairs meant the loss of some original features when it reopened in 1986.
In more recent years the property became vacant and was infested with pigeons, which were cleared during the summer of 2018.
The property dates from circa 1763 and received Grade II Listed Building status on 4th February 1988.
Extensive works are planned for the building including the removal of existing staircase and creation of new timber staircase with rooflight above, dumb waiter installed to all floor and new partitions throughout to create en-suite guest accommodation and café /reception area. Disabled access is also proposed to the side elevation with accessible facilities on the ground floor. It is hoped to restore the eagle over the doorway.
Parking spaces are not included in the application but nearby Cannon Street car park is highlighted.
Planning documents say: “The proposals seek to create a B&B / Hotel with modern standards of bedroom space and ensuite facilities as well as ancillary spaces required.
“It is hoped that the benefits of reinstating one of the oldest pubs in Ramsgate into accommodation for tourists will outweigh the perceived harm of removing the rear structures that have largely been rebuilt in the late 1980s with little remaining fabric of historic importance.”
The Eagle Inn (formerly the Spread Eagle and The Spread-Eagle Tavern) started life as three cottages in 1763. Soon after which, in 1776, it was converted into an inn. In 1809 it had its own water pump at the rear of the building and in 1810 it also had a saddler’s workshop. Between 1846-1874 the pub doubled as a revenue office because the landlord William Terry was also a tax collector!
The former pub previously had permission granted to change its use into a hotel in 2017. This lapsed and a further application to convert it into four flats, lodged in 2019, was withdrawn.
The property was then offered at auction last year with a freehold guide price of £250,000-plus.
The new owner has since made the building water tight and removed damaged and sodden fabric relating to the 1986 period of rebuild.
A decision on the application is yet to be made.
