NEW owners are wanted for an historic York pub which has gone on the market.

Offers in excess of £450,000 are invited for the Castle Howard Ox, which is in a busy residential area within walking distance of York city centre, and currently vacant.

If successful, the selling off of the Townend Street venue would leave The Groves area of the city with just one pub after losing three others in recent years.

York Press:

Picture: The vacant Castle Howard Ox, Townend Street, York, is on the market. Pictures: Rightmove/ Fleurets Limited, North

Thought to date back to the 1830s, the two-storey property has a bar, lounge and an enclosed patio, a trade yard, as well as five bedrooms on the first and second floors.

Marketing agent Fleurets Limited, Leeds, says there is an opportunity for an alternative use, subject to planning permission.

Councillors rejected earlier plans by Alfa Homes, a Wetherby-based developer, to convert the pub into 16 flats for student accommodation last year, saying they had not been shown enough evidence to show the business was unviable.

York Press:

The student accommodation plans Picture: Council planning documents 

Star Pubs and Bars purchased the venue in 2017 and immediately shut it, the planning committee was told.

It was then put up for sale in November 2018. With the freehold advertised for £250,000, it attracted more than 80 inquiries but none of the final 12 bids were to run it as a pub or restaurant.

When committee members considered the application last November, Cllr Jonny Crawshaw said the authority's own policy on ensuring community facilities are marketed for at least a year had not been met.

Evidence submitted to the council only showed it had been marketed for seven months.

He said at the time: “I feel that this is unfortunately another example of pub operators seeing their buildings as assets that they can turnover for a quick profit and I think that that is what is happening here.

“If we are putting in policies then we ought to stick to those policies and I think that if we had received financial information submitting that the profitability of the pub was not viable in 2017 then it might be a slightly different situation."

The report by council planning officers had recommended the scheme for approval, highlighting the 'high turnover of tenants; and struggles to compete with the neighbouring Punch Bowl public house'.

The report said: “Bearing in mind the close proximity of other public houses, offering a similar, but a wider range of services than the application site can or could provide, officers do not consider that the loss of the pub would result in undue harm to the local community.”

A number of objections from residents had raised concerns about the 'small' students rooms, and potential for mental health problems; the loss of another pub in the area, leaving the Groves with just one; and the lack of parking which would exacerbate parking issues in the area.