THE DEATH knell for York's Frog Hall pub could be sounded this week as plans for a burger bar go before councillors.

Developers have applied to tear down the building, replacing it with a drive-through restaurant, a video store and two other shops.

Officers have advised City of York Council's planners to accept the proposals. Mick Britton, the council's development control officer, will tell them: "As the retail use is generally acceptable and the loss of the public house would be difficult to resist, the application is supported."

A fight to save the pub was lost last month as landlord Wayne Allan threw in the bar towel and announced he is moving to another pub. It followed a hard-fought campaign, led by the Evening Press, to save it. More than 1,400 people signed a petition demanding it stayed open.

The proposal is to take up land used by the pub and stretching over former gasworks land to the entrance of the Transco depot.

But it has met with opposition from groups, including the Environment Agency, which is concerned about contamination of the land, most of which was used as a gasworks for more than 100 years.

An agency spokesman said: "We are aware that there may be a source of deeper contamination on the site which has not been considered as part of the submitted supporting information."

Real ale campaign group CAMRA has objected to the closure of a pub, while the York Green Party and the York Cycle Campaign have voiced concerns about extra traffic.

Mr Britton will ask councillors to agree that: "An intrusive site investigation shall be undertaken on the currently un-investigated section of land."

It would need to be approved by City of York Council before work began. Planners will discuss the application on Thursday.

Updated: 11:22 Monday, January 28, 2002