A FORMER bank in Newport city centre is set for a new lease of life, as work starts to turn it into a pub.

The former Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) building on Commercial Street has stood empty since closing to customers in August 2018.

Now, a little over three years later, it looks like life may be returning to 32-33 Commercial Street, in the heart of the city centre.

Earlier this year, a planning application was submitted to Newport City Council, in a bid to change the allowed use of the premises from a bank/financial services to a pub.

While the outcome of this application has not yet been updated on the council’s online planning portal, it appears as though internal work is currently underway inside the ground floor unit.

Earlier this week, construction material was seen inside the premises.

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Along with the planning application, signs in the windows suggest that the applicant – Marc Evans of Rhymney Brewery Limited, has also applied to the council for a premises licence.

If approved, it would allow the venue to serve alcohol, play live sporting events and music, in addition to hosting live music.

The proposed hours for this site are currently stated as 8am to 11.30pm from Monday to Thursday, 8am to midnight from Friday to Saturday, and 8am to 11.30pm on Sundays.

Rhymney Brewery, a Torfaen based company, is best known for its ales, rather than operating pubs – though they do have a small number of physical premises, primarily in the South Wales area.

At their headquarters, the company opened a visitor centre, allowing members of the public a behind the scenes look at the brewing process, and a history of the popular beverage in the region.

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Should plans be approved, the Newport pub would be their latest, and would create two full time, and six part time jobs in the area.

Given its location in Newport, no parking provision is needed to be supplied in relation to this application – though the applicant is required to provide a detailed plan for managing deliveries.

To date, the proposals have attracted a response from one neighbouring property, in which occupants have raised concerns about “noise and odours emanating from this building”, and have requested that conditions be put in place to protect nearby businesses.

The planning application can be viewed online here.