Chesham Arms: council confronts owner Mukund Patel over ‘unauthorised use’
Cheers!: Save The Chesham Arms supporters enjoy a celebratory pint outside the closed pub. Credit: CAMRA/Flickr
Campaigners believe they are a step closer to saving an historic former pub after Hackney Council confronted its owner over his alleged unauthorised use of the building.
The council today confirmed it has served Mukund Patel, owner of the building that was formerly the Chesham Arms pub, with a planning enforcement notice, adding that he had “been told to cease use of the first floor as residential space”.
The pub, in Mehetabel Road, Homerton, closed a year ago but was given protected status when Hackney Council listed it as an Asset of Community Value (ACV) earlier this year.
Mr Patel wants to convert the building into flats and unsuccessfully challenged the awarding of ACV status at a tribunal hearing last month.
Campaigners say he is already renting out a flat in the building without permission.
A spokesman for Mr Patel said: “We are very disappointed to receive the enforcement notice and we are considering appealing it.”
He said a decision would be made after he meets with his counsel later this week.
Don’t we have enough drinking establishments in London? Bars are opened in basements and empty shops. Housing is more important in my view.
The developer may be disappointed to have had an enforcement notice, but he can hardly be surprised. Hackney warned him a planning application was needed for the flat last July. He deliberately ignored this, and Hackney should be commended for insisting the proper procedure is followed.
Hi Near to Hackney,
It may seem like we have enough drinking establishments but this is specifically about saving a community pub. East London has lost 52% of its pubs since 1983 and in Hackney the figure is 56%. This is almost twice the UK average. Over half our pubs have gone! Flats, chicken shops, betting shops, payday loan shops and supermarkets. Communities need places to socially interact. I agree there is a housing shortage but Mukund Patel is not proposing to build affordable family homes at the Chesham Arms. Mukund Patel is proposing to build over-priced one bedroom flats and make himself a lot of profit before moving on to destroy someone else’s community. Not acceptable. The fight back has begun – Hands OFF our pubs!
What is more housing without a pub to make it a community? The Chesham was/is my local. I don’t want to live in a dormitory, I want to live in a community and meet my neighbours… and where better than the pub.