As originally reported here in August, Pomegranate restaurant has been refused retrospective planning consent for changes to the exterior of its B-listed Antigua Street premises (Ref. 13/02520/LBC; Breaking news, 14.8.13).
City of Edinburgh Council alleged 7 breaches of listed building control:
- the installation of illuminated signage within the fan lights above the entrances to the premises on the Antigua Street and Union Street elevations;
- the attachment of strip lighting above the string course on both the Antigua Street and Union Street elevations;
- the fixing of two menu boards on either side to the main entrance on Antigua Street;
- the fixing of two CCTV cameras on the Union Street elevation;
- the installation of wooden decking, measuring 4.80 metres in length by 2.02 metres in width by 0.15 metres in depth on the Union Street elevation;
- the fixing of bamboo fencing to the railings on the Union Street elevation; and
- the erection of a canopy, with associated fixings, on the Union Street elevation.
Pomegranate appealed the decision with the Scottish Government, and lost. Reporter Richard Dent found that the appeal failed in respect of all seven items. Follow this link to read his detailed reasons.
Pomegranate claims that its problems stem from one complaining neighbour who did not object to similar architectural features in place when the restaurant was an Italian rather than Middle Eastern establishment. There is an unpleasant and unprovable implication here, for which we have seen no evidence. In any case, that implication is irrelevant to the grounds on which the Council made its initial decision and Mr Dent subsequently rejected the appeal.
Pomegranate has been arguing its position since via a Facebook page, claiming that the Enforcement action will threaten the livelihoods of those employed at the restaurant. It does not specify how.
Pomegranate has also launched an online petition here. People who 'love the restaurant and their food' or who 'find this situation completely unfair' have been invited to sign. Despite the extreme vagueness of these expressions, and the lack of an address to which the petition will be sent, many people (over 1,000) have apparently added their names to it.
Meanwhile, social media channels are humming with local outrage, much of it uninformed, much of it fuelled by various shades of sympathy, alarm or a poorly disguised appetite for controversy.
Spurtle supports local small businesses. However, it seems there is a lot more emotion than clear thinking in response to this case.
Whilst we found the alterations to the building fairly unobtrusive, Pomegranate's arguments were – as far as we can see – fairly assessed according to due process. It is unclear to us how the removal of these external additions will threaten the livelihoods of Pomegranate staff. They have, after all, shown themselves to be both excellent restaurateurs and highlighly effective self-marketers.
We suspect Pomegranate's future will be bright long after the puff has gone from this particular storm in a teacup.
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@theSpurtle your article is quite insulting to those who support them. You assume we can't read planning outcomes.
Broughton Spurtle @theSpurtle
@speybaysoul Not intended as such. Perfectly accept people can read planning etc and reach different conclusion.
@allytibbitt@theSpurtle lol you're imagining a well funded service there Ally.#dreamon@papawasarodeo@theSpurtle Wonder if these things wld be seen as fairer if planners assessed whole block at once - and reported that way.@papawasarodeo@theSpurtle God knows.. It's a *perception* of piecemeal/selective enforcement that I think riles ppl.@greenerleith@theSpurtle do I detect a different stance from the one you took on Real Foods?@papawasarodeo@greenerleith Difficult to draw the line. CEC's attitude to shade of green certainly seemed OTT.
Ally Tibbitt 
Broughton Spurtle @theSpurtle@papawasarodeo@greenerleith their objection to two standard sized menu boards which are seen everywhere is not OTT????@theSpurtle A restaurant with NO menu boards, NO lighting and limited signage, yes, we'd say that would affect our livelihood!!!
Pomegranate