A much-loved historic pub is being targeted by council busybodies in a "ridiculous" planning row.
Greenwich Council has issued an enforcement notice threatening to remove outdoor seating from the historic Trafalgar Tavern, one of Britain's most celebrated riverside pubs.
The Grade II-listed inn on the Thames Path faces losing its "al fresco" tables after complaints about restricted access for pedestrians, wheelchair users and families with pushchairs.
The council said it was "important that everyone can use [the path] easily" and that a "balance" was needed.
TRAFALGAR TAVERN/GOOGLE
|Greenwich Council has issued an enforcement notice threatening to remove outdoor seating from the historic Trafalgar Tavern
The narrow walkway offers views across the Thames towards Canary Wharf and the Shard, making it a popular destination for tourists and locals alike.
But pub landlord Frank Dowling, who has managed the venue since 2001, warned that removing tables would create a "different problem" and could force him to cut staff.
"If you don't have tables and chairs there, you're going to have tons of people standing around drinking," he said.
"Vertical drinking is not something that works for us. That causes a different problem. If we lose the structure, we lose control of the environment. People will just gather there anyway, but without the order that tables and service provide."
While manager Vasil Vasilev, 41, who has worked at the pub since 2017, said the move would "absolutely damage tourism in the area, without any valid reasons whatsoever."
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PA
|The Trafalgar Tavern sits just next door to Greenwich's old Royal Naval College (pictured)
He described the council's actions as "just ridiculous", adding: "We are not blocking pedestrian access - there's plenty of room. There are three or four metres of access. We are a family-friendly pub - we have large groups of runners, mothers with prams."
Dowling explained that the pub leases the Thames Path section from the Greenwich Foundation, a naval charity supporting historic buildings in the area, with rent paid annually.
He says the pub has legal tenure over the outdoor seating space.
Additionally, Dowling said the pub entered a formal Section 16 agreement with Greenwich Council in 2005, under which the venue paid for improvement works including resurfacing, landscaping and highway changes.
The works were "paid for entirely by the pub and carried out with council involvement and approval", Dowling added.
The Trafalgar Tavern's landlord says the pub has legal tenure over its outdoor seating space
He also noted that staff clean and jet-wash the area several times a week.
A Greenwich council spokesman acknowledged the Trafalgar Tavern was a "much-loved, historic venue" but confirmed they had received "some complaints about the extended outdoor seating onto the Thames Path".
The council emphasised the need to follow planning policies - but called for "a sensible solution that doesn't stop people enjoying the pub's view, or using the Thames Path".
Representations opposing the enforcement notice can be submitted to the council's planning inspectorate until June 12, quoting appeal reference APP/E5330/C/25/3364847.