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Tesco Express is set to open in West Kirby on the site of the former Leaf restaurant.
An application to convert the building on Black Horse Hill and construct five homes on the remaining land was submitted last December.
The application has not yet been considered by planners at Wirral Council but, in anticipation of it getting the green light, the supermarket giant has applied for a premises license for the site.
They are seeking permission to open from 6am until midnight every day, including the sale of alcohol.
Leaf closed at the start of 2025, with owner Natalie Heywood telling West Kirby Today that she couldn't see a way back for the venue, partly due to an increase in the national minimum wage. A letting agent listing for the site stated the annual rent was almost £85,000 per year.
An application by Beck Homes submitted to the council requests a change of use for the building, along with external alterations, amended access and parking, and the construction of five properties with parking and landscaping.
A planning and heritage statement submitted with the application states: "It is proposed that the northern and western parts of the site will accommodate five dwellings, utilising the surplus car parking and former beer garden.
"The proposed dwellings will comprise a detached two-storey dwelling fronting Black Horse Hill, two bungalow-style properties and a pair of semi-detached dwellings.
"Each property will be provided with dedicated car parking and generous garden spaces. New landscaping will be introduced to the residential access road and to the boundary between the access road and the car park to the convenience store."
In relation to the retail unit, it adds: "The proposed convenience store would be a modern, top-up food shopping facility to meet the day-to-day needs of residents within this part of West Kirby. It will provide sales floorspace of approximately 230 sq. m for the sale of a range of chilled and ambient foodstuffs with some fresh fruit and vegetables and frozen foods.
"A range of food-on-the-go, beverages and household essentials would also be sold. Given the size and nature of the convenience store, the range of food and beverages available will be more limited than in larger food stores and the sale of ancillary non-food items will be de minimis."
If approved, it would mark the end of an era for the building dating back at least 200 years. According to the CAMRA website, the first record of a pub on the site was in 1822 when it was known as the Chesnut Horse.
Later in the 1800s it was renamed the Bay Horse, and later the Black Horse. In the 2000s it was subject to a huge refit and was known as The Collingwood, before briefly becoming The Hilltop.
Celebrity chef Simon Rimmer took it over in 2016 and renamed it The Viking, before it shut and was taken over by Leaf in 2020.
As part of the work, the side extension where the toilets are located would be removed to make way for a new entrance for the shop.
The application states: "The significance of the existing building will be preserved by its retention, the introduction of new commercial use that provides an alternative facility for the local community and by delivering new investment which will help to sustain its conservation in the longer term.
"The architectural significance of the building will be preserved and enhanced by the removal of modern additions including the prominent single-storey extension to the side elevation and sympathetic redecoration of the building."
Photo credits: Urban Agile Planning and Regeneration
