Fresh attempts to transform a 19th-century town centre "eyesore" have divided opinion.

Owners of the ex-Royal Leisure Centre and Snooker Club in Deal have been forced to reapply for permission to tear it down and replace it with flats and shops.

MW Amusements Ltd initially had the application approved in 2019, but the expiration to develop it has now lapsed, resulting in permission being sought again.

They hope to sell the site on with planning permission already in place for the transformation, with the view the new owner would develop the site.

The King Street building once housed an arcade and snooker hall, although both were found to be financially unsustainable.

The plans would see three shops make up the ground floor, while a total of 16 flats would be spread across three storeys above it.

These are comprised of a mixture of one-bedroom and two-bedroom flats.

According to the plans, the development will have no car parking spaces, instead adding cycle storage space on the ground floor, alongside refuge space.

The area between the flats and pub The Just Reproach would also be revamped to include benches and plants, opening up the view of Middle Street and giving the area a sense of purpose.

The plans have now been submitted to Dover District Council for a third time, after previously being revised and submitted in 2018 and 2019 respectively.

Since the first attempt in 2018, a total of eight apartments have been removed from the originally-slated 24, while the number of shops has been reduced from five to three.

Named previously as Royal Lodge, planning permission was actually granted in July 2019, with work envisaged to be completed within the following two years.

However, work never began and after three years of inactivity, the planning permission lapsed – forcing the owners to resubmit the plans.

The most recent submission has gained 67 comments, split between supporting and opposing views.

A total of 43 of these are in favour of the application, while 24 are against it.

Deal resident Tim Wright described the application as "an ideal opportunity to demolish an old redundant and non-value adding structure [and] replace it with a new modern worthwhile building.
"It would provide business premises and accommodation and security to those keen to move to Deal," he added.

Cheryl Harris added: "I am currently looking for modern new build accommodation in the centre of Deal town centre and this location would be ideal for me.

"It will bring much needed improvement to what is currently becoming an eyesore in a beautiful town."

However, a letter in objection from Brendon Harvey said that a "vital link to Deal's past" would be lost by demolishing the building.

He added: "This is an historic building relating to Deal's once numerous cinema and theatre provision.

"Now that provision is extinct, with the other remaining building, the Art Deco Regent, also subject to ruinous decay.

"By allowing this building to be demolished another vital link to Deal's past will be lost.

"It's the the presence of such buildings along the High Street and surroundings of Middle Street that attracts visitors and new residents alike.

"Remove these and Deal becomes an anodyne town like many others.

"DDC should be preserving its uniqueness not allowing it to be destroyed.

"Piecemeal infill of new development in a historic quarter of the town is not the way forward."