Villagers welcome pub reopening plan (From Herald Series)

Villagers welcome pub reopening plan

2:38pm Friday 5th September 2008

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PLANS to clean up and reopen Nuneham Courtenay's only pub have been welcomed by the parish council and villagers.

But details of exactly what is planned for the Harcourt Arms - or Mount Bay Inn as it has been called in the past - are being kept under wraps.

The pub closed down in April 2004 after a chequered history of different owners - and has remained boarded up, litter-strewn and looking run-down ever since.

The villagers hope the reopening of the pub could herald a rejuvenation of the area, which is thought to have inspired Oliver Goldsmith's poem, The Deserted Village.

In recent years, the village, which sits on the A4074, has lost its post office, its shop, and a car dealership which operated opposite the derelict pub.

Villager Valerie Woodman said: "It's a disgrace as it stands now. Any tidying up of the area and reopening as a pub is to be very much welcomed. I just wish we could have our village shop and post office back as well."

Despite the villagers' excitement, the plans for the building remain under wraps.

South Oxfordshire District Council has granted planning permission for internal and exterior work in preparation for the pub's reopening.

However, despite many requests from The Herald, neither the owner, Allan Yeung, of Winnersh, Reading, nor his agent, Atlantis Property Services, would reveal timescales for the refurbishments or how the property would be developed.

The district council set a three-year time limit for work inside the building and landscaping around it to be done. It granted planning permission after the village's parish council urged it to give the refurbishment of the listed building the go-ahead A report from the parish council read: "The building is becoming a ruin. People who are investing time, money and energy should be encouraged. The village will look a lot nicer for these improvements."

Another villager, who would not be named, said: "The trouble with the pub is that Nuneham Courtenay is a tiny village and that is a huge building so it must rely a lot on passing trade.

"It is an eyesore, but the potential for it could be really great. I am delighted to hear that something might be happening to it at last."

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