A York café described as a ‘little gem’ is to be converted into a home as its owners plan to retire.
The Java Bar on Eastholme Drive in Rawcliffe has garnered a reputation as a great community hub.
It has a 4.9/5 rating on TripAdvisor with visitors calling it “an absolute delight” and “a lovely place”.
It is set to keep trading for the time being.
Run by William Betteridge and his wife, the café is known for its friendly atmosphere, great coffee and homemade cakes.
“The proposed development involves the conversion of the existing building at 18 Eastholme Drive, which currently comprises a ground floor café and upper and rear residential accommodation, into a single residential dwelling for the current owners,” planning documents say.
“Externally, the proposal seeks to remove the front extendable pergola-style shelter and timber cladding elements to introduce an open front porch space to clearly distinguish the transformation from the café to a residential dwelling.”
Java Bar originally shared a building with Eastholme Newsagents. It was expanded into a fully-fledged café across the whole of the ground floor in 2019 when the newsagents closed.
A planning report states: “The property has historically been in residential use. A café was operated from the dwelling for a period following the forced closure of a Post Office due to the larger scale Post Office scandal (Post Office now located in the adjacent building).
“However, this use was small-scale and not located within a designated employment area or on safeguarded employment land.
“The café was owner-operated, with both owners working full time in the business. The owners now need to retire, and as a result the café will cease trading.”
It says the property was put on sale for £600K last July but “little interest was shown” because of the mix of residential and commercial use.
You can read and comment on the planning application here.
