Developers have submitted a planning application to Salford City Council asking for permission to build 51 homes on the site of the closed Brown Cow pub in Winton.
SalfordOnline.com reported the pub’s shock closure in January 2015.
It came with the loss of six jobs and fears it might never re-open.
At the time it closed there were rumours the Brown Cow would be knocked down and replaced with a supermarket – as happened at the former White Horse on Gilda Brook Road.
The site off Worsley Road was used for allotment gardens from the 1920s to the 1960s, and the original Brown Cow public house was demolished and rebuilt in 1971 to make way for the M602.
Now it’s clear that Robinsons Brewery, who jointly submitted the plans with Caspia Management Ltd, want housing on the site instead.
Caspia Management Ltd, which was set up in March 2015, are listed as a wholesale scrap merchants with headquarters in Stockport.
Their initial plans were to build a mix of houses and flats, retaining the pub building to turn it into a nursery.
But Salford council advised that they would support the demolition of the Brown Cow.
The 51 homes are made up of 33 townhouses and 18 apartments: six one-bed flats, 12 two-bed flats, 17 three-bed and 16 four-bed houses.
Section 106 payments totalling £298,887.50, along with a requirement of four affordable homes “would render the scheme unviable”, say the applicants.
The main issue with housing on this site is the noise from the M602 motorway.
Early-stage CGIs indicate that developers are looking to get round this by using screening trees and building three-storey terraces to block out the noise.
Kitchens and bathrooms would face towards the noisy bridge rather than bedrooms and living rooms.
The Environment Agency has objected to the scheme on the grounds that it would be built within eight metres of Worsley and Folly Brook, and would restrict emergency access to the watercourse.
Planning documents state: “A meeting was held at the Urban Vision Offices including the development team. The meeting was to discuss the proposed development options.
“It was highlighted that the Council would be supportive of the demolition of the pub building as this would allow for a comprehensive redevelopment of the site. This is the option which has been taken forward.”
Both Robinson’s Brewery and their agents Indigo Planning were contacted for comment, but had not replied by the time this article was published.
The application is now being considered by council planning officers.
You can read the full planning application – 15/67244/FUL – on the Salford City Council website
