New plans submitted for café with rooftop terrace next to popular Northumberland beach

Planning permission for a two-storey proposal was granted by Northumberland County Council earlier this year despite significant opposition.

However, applicant Stephen Dixon of Windsor Developments has now lodged an application for a single storey restaurant/café on the site some 100 yards from the beach.

A report on the applicant’s behalf states: ‘The applicant has reconsidered the appropriateness of the previous design and evaluated the customer demand which has resulted in amending the design to a single storey building.’

It goes on to say that the new plan aims to ‘better reflect the ambition of the developers and restaurateurs to create a destination venue for this amazing location at Beadnell Bay.’

The new design features glass doors opening on to an outside space ‘that allows customers to stay casual as they come off the beach, enjoy the sun at all times of the day and caters for families.’

The report adds: ‘At roof terrace, there will be a number of seating with an opportunity for ‘viewing areas’ that also affords customers a view of the bay and sea over the council car park and dunes that lay to the south east of the site.

‘The design proposal provides a striking beach side eating venue that has contemporary appeal to the wide range of customers that might use the venue for lunchtime and end of day beach goers, early evening holiday maker refreshment and more formal dining customers from the village but also from further across this part of Northumberland.’

It would mainly feature timber cladding to give it a beach cabin appearance, apart from the large glazed area at the front.

‘Compared to the design of the granted permission the design is less imposing to the surrounding neighbours and sits comfortably within its context by having a more landscape and open connection it to its wider site,’ states the planning report.

The application includes parking provision for 58 vehicles, including three accessible bays.

Six letters of objection have been submitted with concerns about noise from the roof terrace, its design, lighting, lack of disabled access to the roof terrace and loss of privacy for local residents.

Sue Reilly, one of the objectors, states: ‘Beadnell is not Benidorm nor should it be allowed to develop in that direction, even if slowly one building at a time. Any outlet for refreshments should be small, temporary and compatible with the area. A small amount of visitors can be tolerated and managed but a larger number will cause a great deterioration in the AONB.’

Fellow objector Russell Field adds: ‘The noise report takes no account whatsoever of the decibels created when humans and alcohol combine in the evening, the level of which at present is unacceptable at Beadnell Bay and can only be exacerbated by this totally unnecessary, unacceptable and undesirable further blemish to our AONB.’

Beadnell Parish Council, however, has decided not to object although it has raised a number of concerns and called for use of the roof terrace to be prohibited after 9pm.

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