THE plight of a former Tisbury pub could give a warning about the future of a much-loved Salisbury property.

Plans have been submitted to turn the South Western Hotel, on Station Road in Tisbury into a Co-op shop.

The pub has been closed since mid-2018, and the application follows a failed bid to turn the pub into a "community hub".

If approved, the current Co-op in Tisbury would be relocated to the site, which the applicants say would allow them to "improve its offer to the local community".

Salisbury Journal: South Western Hotel, Station Road, Tisbury

Like Grosvenor House, the pub was registered as an Asset of Community Value in May 2019.

Proposals were put forward to turn the building into a mixed use community hub including a café and retail shop.

The Tisbury Community Benefit Society were unable to raise sufficient funds to purchase the premises, and therefore the bid was unsuccessful.

Grosvenor and Riverside House was listed as an Asset of Community Value (ACV) in February of this year, following a petition from Community Interest Community (CIC) Rise Resound Rebuild.

The decision said: "Having considered all the information and submissions provided, Wiltshire Council has decided to enter the property onto the list of Assets of Community Value."

It adds that the property is currently unused, but its last use as a youth and community centre in 2017 is "believed to have enhanced the culture of Salisbury through music where musicians would come together".

Salisbury Journal: Grosvenor House. Picture by Spencer Mulholland

What does this mean?

This ACV status does not mean that the group will get Grosvenor House as an asset transfer for free - the value is too high for that. They will now need to raise the funding to purchase it.

The owner of the property also does not have to sell the asset to the community interest group.

In July, Wiltshire Councillors voted unanimously not to support proposals from Rise Resound Rebuild.

Issues raised included the viability of the proposal and the knowledge that the commercial buyer of the properties and land is still waiting to purchase the properties.

This meant the group had six weeks to lodge a bid to purchase the property and then a further six months to raise the funds.

If R3 can't raise the money, Grosvenor House could go the same way as the South Western Hotel, once the property owners are eventually able to sell.

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