Former Yates' Wine Lodge in Yorkshire could become 24/7 'adult gaming centre'

The former Yates’s Wine Lodge pub, in Hull city centre, could be converted into a gambling venue, after standing empty for more than a decade.

Plans would see the venue in Hull’s Paragon Street, which most recently traded as Kingston Tavern, converted into an “adult gaming centre”, operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The conversion would make a positive contribution to the city centre economy, including creating up to 14 jobs, according to the agent advancing the plans, JR Planning Consultants.

Last year, plans were approved to convert the 19th-century building into a food, retail or cafe outlet, along with 13 flats. However, the agent now says those proposals are now no longer viable due to the state of the property market.

The pub building, which has stood empty since 2012, was bought at auction in 2021, with a guide price of £200,000. The latest plans would see the building converted to offer gambling machines such as slots and bingo in an age-restricted setting for over 18s only.

A similar centre was approved in South Shields, Tyneside, in December, despite objections from Northumbria Police about the effects of gambling on the wider community. No objections have been raised, as of yet, to the plan for Hull city centre.

According to the plans, the development would help improve the wider Jameson Street Conservation Area by helping to preserve its historic character. The building dates from the first half of the 19th century and the upper floors retain some of their historic features. The ground-floor pub frontage is a modern addition.

The gaming centre would cause less disturbance than a pub, with the only noise coming from the machines themselves.

The plans state: “The application seeks permission for 24-hour use. Given the town centre location, and that there would be no adverse impacts, this is entirely appropriate for the location.

“The proposed scheme represents a sustainable form of development that would not have any unacceptable impact for the reasons set out. The use would have no harmful impact at all on the retail function of this part of the city centre.

“Indeed, it would make a positive contribution through the generation of linked trips and employment and would add positively to the city centre mix and to the local economy. The development would see the unit secured with an appropriate town centre use that would contribute positively to the city centre economy and would maintain the vitality and viability of the city centre.”