NewsBeat
Greene King plan to refurbish Ye Olde Starre Inne in Stonegate, York
Owners Greene King’s plans would see changes made inside and outside the Ye Olde Starre Inne, off Stonegate.
The plans include replacing a wooden sign which spans between buildings on either side of Stonegate advertising the pub to passersby and featuring its 1644 establishment date.
Greene King’s application stated the works would respect the building’s historic features while providing much-needed updates and improving the experience for patrons.
Plans for the refurbishments would see the sign spanning across Stonegate swapped for one with Greene King’s dark green and copper colour scheme.
The proposed sign for Ye Olde Starre Inne, in Stonegate, York. Picture is from Greene King/York Council’s planning portal, available for all LDRS partners to use.
The entrance to its beer garden, doors and window frames, which are all currently black, would also be repainted dark green.
Bar areas on the inside of the pub building would be rearranged and timber floors would be refinished with staining and polish.
New fixed seats and lights would be installed and the toilets would also be refurbished with new wall tiles and flooring.
A timber and polycarbonate pergola would cover the beer garden and outside lights would be replaced and walls repainted.
It had become an inn called The Starre by 1644 and it is the pub in York which can show it has had a licence the longest.
During the English Civil War, it was used as a hospital for wounded soldiers after the Battle of Marsden Moor, which took place about seven miles from York in 1644.
In 1733, the pub’s landlord Thomas Bulman struck a deal with the owners of two shops on either side of Stonegate to hang a sign across the street.
A sign advertising the pub has been there ever since.
More extensions were added in the 18th and 19th Century and the building was refurbished in 1890 and 1985.
The pub was listed in 1954 and it features in Susanna Clarke’s 2004 alternate history novel Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, which is set during the Napoleonic Wars.
Plans stated the refurbishment would aim to bring the pub up to Greene King’s high standards across its estate.
They added the changes would respect the wider historic local area and the distinctiveness of the listed building.
Plans stated: “The proposed works seek to ensure the public house will continue to be a vibrant destination, assisting in helping to retain and attract new patrons.
“The proposed scope of works is limited to those necessary to improve the overall function of the existing pub and in doing so shall contribute to the economic vitality of the local area.”