AMBITIOUS plans for Droitwich’s Raven Hotel have been given the go-ahead.
LPW Development UK Ltd’s proposal will see the partial demolition of the building and the repair, refurbishment and conversion of the Raven Hotel building for commercial use on the ground floor.
The new-look venue would include brine baths and a gin bar, along with nine flats on the upper floors in the timber frame core buildings which would be retained.
Uncovered tree-ring dating has shown the core buildings go back to the mid 1400s and are among the oldest in Droitwich.
Despite removal of some walls in the Victorian redevelopment, the substantial timber frames are in relatively good condition.
The modern extensions would be demolished back to the listed building, leaving the 15th to 18th Centrury core plus the ’19th Century bookends’ either side.
Replacing the newer parts of the site would be 48 houses and flats – nine of them facing out onto St Andrew’s Street.
All the vacant outbuildings would also be bulldozed.
The Raven Hotel itself is a much extended and altered 16th Century Grade II listed building on 1.08hectares in the town centre and within the Droitwich Spa Conservation Area.
The building has been vacant since 2010, is deteriorating and has been subjected to vandalism.
The site also includes a large car park, a holly tree at the site’s south-western corner and other trees including a mature Blue Atlas Cedar protected by Tree Preservation Orders.
Concerns were raised during the meeting about the citing of the brine baths in relation to the historic wooden beams.
Some groups, including the Droitwich Preservation Trust, the Droitwich Spa Civic Society and the Society for the Preservation of Ancient Buildings had all expressed fears about the damage the brine could do to the beams.
Coun Bill Moy, from Save Our Brine Baths (SOBBS) said a technological solution would be implemented to negate the danger of the beams being damaged.
High-tech air conditioning and temperature regulation systems would make sure the air was regulated and safeguard the beams against the prospect of being affected by the brine.
“We at SOBBS are proud of our heritage and those beams are part of it – we would not do anything to damage our heritage.”
He added ‘staycation’ was the ‘buzz word’ at the moment and the new Brine Baths would – along with the Lido, the town’s history and other attractions across the county, such as Pershore’s plums and Evesham’s asparagus, would make the district an ideal tourist destination.
He added it would improve footfall for the town, enhancing both the daytime and nighttime economies.
Watch the meeting below.
