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From 'The News Shopper' dated Wednesday, June 10th 1998.
McDonald’s Plan £1m pub facelift.
The fast-food giant McDonald’s look almost certain to open a new
restaurant in a former pub. Burger bosses plan to buy and invest £1
million in redeveloping the Railway Hotel in Greenhithe and are
anticipating opening business in time for Christmas.
If Dartford Council
agrees, the building and grounds will undergo extensive improvements and
landscaping. The current landlord of The Railway Hotel, Adrian Smith,
knew about the possible McDonald’s development about a year ago, but was
only told it was going ahead last week.
He said: “Nobody approached me,
and I only found out definitely last week. I shall be moving to another
pub which will be far more suitable for my wife and child. The building
has a great deal of potential, what with its location near the Bluewater
shopping centre and being on a main road. This new scheme does not
surprise me at all.”
There will also be parking space for 38 cars and it
is hoped more than 70 jobs will be created. Although the vast Bluewater
shopping centre is being built nearby, a spokesman said the restaurant
was being created with only the local community in mind.
McDonald’s is
still in negotiation with Bluewater over the possibility of opening a
branch in the centre. This is not the first time the fast-food chain has
opened in an old pub. Recently, the famous "Yorkshire Grey" pub in Eltham
became a drive through burger outlet, as did the Sawyer’s hostelry on
Bromley Common, much to the dismay of residents.
The spokesman added:
“The work we will do on the "Railway Hotel" building will be a vast
improvement to the local environment. The existing customer demand in
the area is high and we think the restaurant will be a huge success.”
A
Dartford Council spokesman, said: “It seems McDonald’s could open on the
site tomorrow and it would be perfectly legal. However, it is subject to
consultation and, if there are objections raised against the plans then
it will go before the council’s planning committee for future
consideration.”
(Kindly researched and sent by Shaun
Gardiner.)
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