Developers to appeal after plans to turn Knightswood church hall into takeaway rejected

A developer hoping to turn a Knightswood church hall into a restaurant and takeaway has launched an appeal against a council decision to reject the plan.

Planners at Glasgow City Council rejected a proposal to convert the Saxon Road building earlier this year as they believed there would be “an unjustified loss of a facility that could provide benefit to the local community”.

The owners have argued that “falling numbers” attend churches and that the “changing nature of how communities come together would justify this development.”

As well as appealing the decision, the developer recently submitted a fresh plan which requests permission to allow the restaurant and takeaway scheme to go ahead.

That application stated there had been two marketing campaigns, and “no community use came forward”.

The initial plan, which is the subject of the appeal, was to “change the use of the building to a composite use comprising a restaurant and hot food takeaway”, a council report states.

It is proposed that the venue, including deliveries, would operate from 8am to 11pm, seven days a week.

The appeal, submitted on behalf of Salman Amin, states the hall has “remained unused” since it was “disposed of by the trustees of the Christian Brethren”.

“The applicant, who was the purchaser, acquired the property as an investment and placed it on the market which attracted a local user who asked the applicant to gain consent for the use being considered by this local review,” it adds.

Planners have reported that policy states the council “will safeguard against the loss of community facilities, unless it can be demonstrated that they are no longer needed”.

They added the applicant has “not provided evidence that the community’s views were sought on continued community use, or that other community uses were sought”.

The report asks councillors to consider whether “all alternative community uses had been explored prior to the proposal being developed”.

The city’s planning review committee will meet on Tuesday.

The second planning application, which is still awaiting a decision from the council, revealed the prospective tenants want to open a “cafe/restaurant that will operate seven days per week, offering breakfast, lunch and dinner”.

It stated: “We believe that such an establishment would greatly benefit the local community.

“We are eager to contribute positively to the Knightswood community and believe that our cafe/restaurant will be a valuable addition to the area.”

The application added religion has “been in decline for a number of years” and that a “similar decline in the popularity of public houses has witnessed the growth of other hospitality venues as Scotland embraces ‘cafe culture’ and these new venues are where people meet today”.