Aussies Could Learn A Lot From The UK's Response To Illegal Pub Damage

It would seem that Australia is not the only country that has issues with overzealous developers prematurely wrecking up old venues (such as the case with Melbourne's Palace Theatre) in order to get a headstart on building apartments they mightn't even have clearance for — our brethren in the United Kingdom apparently face it too.

The key difference between the countries, at least now, is that the UK seems to have had a gutful of it, recently ordering Tel Aviv-based developers CLTX Ltd to rebuild, brick-by-brick, a historic London pub they had demolished without permission.

According to Brit paper The Standard, CLTX Ltd — who own the Carlton Tavern — ordered bulldozers to demolish the 1920s era venue, which rests in the London suburb of Maida Vale, having kept staff at home under the pretense of carrying out inventory.  The move "triggered outrage" among the community, The Standard says, with city councillors now having issued an "unprecedented" order for the company to "recreate in facsimile the building as it stood immediately prior to its demolition".

The enforcement notice will also prevent CLTX Ltd from offloading the site to another buyer before they have completed restoration works, with the council moving to list the pub as a non-designated heritage asset in order to prevent future demolition at the site. The incident has also sparked a review of existing protections for the country's historic pubs, with plans to strengthen such measures to prevent similar occurrences in future.

Although, before it was demolished, the Carlton Tavern had not yet been bestowed with heritage status, The Standard reports it was under consideration for Grade II status — reserved for buildings of particular importance and "more than special interest" at a level generally "beyond dispute" — by Historic England on account of the venue being "remarkably well-preserved externally and internally"; before that could be confirmed, though, CLTX Ltd made the call on 8 April to inform staff it would be closed, before bulldozers came in to demolish the building. 

"An asset which was a listable heritage asset has been demolished in breach of planning control," council planning committee's director of planning, John Walker, said in a report to the body. "In these circumstances, it is not considered that other lesser steps are possible to address the harm other than to require complete rebuilding."

CLTX Ltd will appeal the decision, with a chance at being able to proceed with their redevelopment plans unimpeded should they emerge victorious. The enforcement notice is expected to be finalised on Tuesday.