UK-WIDE hospitality company Loungers could soon have one of their café bars based at a recently closed Tenby seafront bar and restaurant.

Loungers, founded in 2002, runs family-friendly Lounge café bars across the UK – including the Cofio Lounge at the Guildhall, Carmarthen, and the Waldo Lounge at Haverfordwest’s Riverside.

In an application submitted to Pembrokeshire Coast National Park, Bristol-based Loungers UK Limited, through agent Richard Pedlar Architects, seeks permission for the installation of new fascia signage and a new totem sign including a menu board at Salty’s Beach Bar and Restaurant, Battery Road, Tenby.

Illustrations for the signage application show the Loungers signage, bearing the name ‘Lansio Lounge’ in the Loungers font, Lansio translating from Welsh to ‘launch’.

Salty’s Beach Bar and Restaurant, a family-run venue based in Tenby, announced its closure on social media, confirming that Sunday, January 4 was its final day of trading.

The Loungers application is only for the signage, any Lounge restaurant scheme unlikely to need approval as the existing location was a similar business, avoiding any need for a change of use application.

Tenby Town Council is recommending approval for the signage, but the park’s buildings conservation officer Rob Scourfield is recommending refusal for the proposals, in the town’s conservation area.

“Section 160 of the Historic Environment (Wales) Act requires that when considering planning applications, special attention must be paid to the desirability of preserving or enhancing the character or appearance of the area.

“As a rule of thumb, we have no allowed internally illuminated signage within the CA, despite pressure to do so. The employment of discrete externally-lit signage would be preferable – as submitted however, the proposal will have an adverse impact on the character and appearance of the conservation area.”

Loungers has been contacted about the proposals and its future plans.

The application will be considered at a later date.

A CALL to convert vacant office space, which was once an HSBC bank, to a ‘welcoming social space’ café in the centre of Pembrokeshire’s only city has been approved.

In an application to Pembrokeshire Coast National Park, Rhiannon Barwick sought permission for a change of use of Old Bank House, 18a Cross Square, St Davids to a café, including the installation of a new side accessible access door and ramp, and creation of outdoor seating area to the rear of the building.

The office space in St Davids’ conservation area has been vacant since the 2022; a 2013 application change for a change of use from the former bank approved previously, the last use of the building as a holiday cottage agency.

A supporting statement accompanying the application said: “The premises has remained vacant and is located within the defined Retail Centre of St Davids. As local people ourselves, we’re passionate about supporting the St Davids community in every way we can — not just by offering a welcoming social space, but by getting involved and hosting activities like a run club.

“We understand what St Davids’ needs to thrive, and we’re committed to being an active, positive part of that.  We’d like to open from 7.30am, as there are currently no other cafés open at that time, and it offers a great opportunity to support early commuters.

“We plan to serve homemade pastries, offering a treat that no other café in St Davids currently provides. We plan to stay open until around 3pm, with additional evening events to host and support local clubs and community activities.”

It added: “In the central area of St Davids, there are currently only two active sit-in cafés, with all others operating on a takeaway-only basis — highlighting a clear need for a welcoming, community-focused space like ours.

“While most other cafes in St Davids are focused on the tourism trade, we would like to focus on both the tourism trade and the growing St Davids Community, by staying open all year round.”

The application was supported by St Davids City Council.

An officer report recommending approval said: “There are no concerns in relation to the impact upon the special qualities of the Park, nor in relation to the character or appearance of the conservation area, or nearby listed buildings. The recommendation is to grant permission subject to suitably worded conditions.”

The application was conditionally approved.

A PREVIOUSLY refused call for the relocation of a Pembrokeshire farm diversification scheme which packages and distributes specialist medical equipment across Europe will be decided by full council after being backed a second time by councillors.

In an application recommended for refusal at the January meeting of Pembrokeshire County council’s planning committee, Mr Van Der Spoel sought permission for the relocation and expansion of an existing farm diversification business into an existing agricultural building at Castle Villa, Hayscastle.

It had previously been recommended for refusal at the December meeting, but members went against the officer recommendation with a ‘minded to’ approval, meaning it returned to the January meeting after a ‘cooling off’ period.

Back in July a similar application by Mr Van Der Spoel, through agent Harries Planning Design Management, was refused by planning officers.

A supporting statement for that application said the Dutch-born applicant, together with his wife and adult daughter ran the farm diversification business packing specialist medical insulated insulin supplies at their 135-acre sheep farm.

It added: “The business run from this site is FRIO ASTRID EURO Ltd, which has a franchise agreement with FRIO UK. This business has been run from Castle Villa since its incorporation in 1998. The business was initially run from the stable building on the farmyard at Castle Villa.

“The business set-up involves receiving stock from FRIO UK in Wolfscastle, packaging orders and distributing the stock to seven Western Europe countries.”

Wolfscastle-based FRIO produces the world’s first patented insulin cooling wallet which keeps insulin and other temperature-sensitive medicines cool and safe.

The scheme for the business, said to have outgrown its current site, was refused by county planners on grounds including a lack of “robust evidence” to prove it couldn’t be sited within a nearby settlement or an allocated employment site, such as Haverfordwest.

The latest application is recommended for refusal on similar grounds.

At the December meeting, members heard from agent Wyn Harries his client’s business, selling into Holland, Belgium, Switzerland, and Germany, accounted for some 20 per cent of FRIO UK’s trade on its own.

Mr Harries spoke again at the January meeting, saying previous articles in the Western Telegraph had shown a great deal of public support for the scheme, which had no local objections, adding of the previous ‘minded to’ approval: “Comments on the Western Telegraph [story] show the general populace would be like-minded with the councillors.”

Cllr Mark Carter said: “The only comments [locally] are why aren’t they allowed to continue? It’s almost an ideal business, they are there, it’s tidy, they are getting on with it, there’s never a complaint, it is very hard to see the business that is going on there; I’m absolutely fully supportive of this family.”

Officers had, if members were again supportive of the scheme, proposed a Section 106 legal agreement condition for approval, to ensure the FRIO ASTRID storage and distribution use remains in the same ownership and control as the existing farm business.

A call by Cllr John T Davies to again go against the officer recommendation of refusal was made, supported by 11 members, with one voting for refusal.

The application will now go before a future full council meeting for a final decision, expected to be the March meeting.