Demolition risk for unprotected Sale Hotel

Such a move would offer the distinctive 1878 hotel some protection from demolition. Currently the owner needs only to apply for permission to build on the site, he does not need permission to pull down the existing building, and he has threatened to do just that by the end of the month.

'For such a landmark building to have no statutory protection from demolition is very worrying,' said Kristian Kaminski, Conservation Adviser for the Victorian Society. ‘We have asked for a new conservation area to be created to help prevent the needless destruction of a key part of the town's history, but that may not be enough. To back that up we need people to start lobbying their local councillors to protect the hotel.'

Once a building is inside a conservation area any development must be seen to enhance the area, and Conservation Area Consent is needed for demolition.

The Sale Hotel was built in 1878 as part of the Sale Botanical gardens. The gardens, which included a ballroom, lake, cycle track and grass tennis courts closed in 1896. The Edwardian houses which surround the hotel were built on the former gardens.

'We are not saying that building must remain as a hotel or pub, but that the fabric of this wonderful and eclectic building must be retained for future generations.'

The Victorian Society wants a Moorfield Estate Conservation Area to be created. It could include parts of Marsland Road, Arran Road, Sylvian Avenue, Moorland Avenue and the Walkden Gardens.

Thursday 23 July, 2009