Decades-old Working men’s club set to fold unless homes are built on site

Crossgates Working Men’s Club in east Leeds wants to sell off an “underused” part of its grounds, once used for car parking, to be developed into a small estate of nine properties.

A statement attached to the planning application for the scheme said the club will “fail” without an “immediate cash injection”.

The club, on Orchard Road in Cross Gates, close to the local rail station, has been running for more than 100 years and is “an important facility for the local community and wider Leeds residents”, the statement said.

Outlining the proposals, it said: “The club is currently in financial difficulty and seeking to maintain its future existence and presence within the community through disposing of an area of surplus land for the erection of nine dwellings together with a new car park for the club.

“The proposed sale would secure the future of the club for the next 20/25 years.”

If approved, the scheme in principle would see a block of three townhouses, all of them three storeys high built, alongside six semi-detached properties.

A total of 20 parking spaces would be provided for the nine houses, the report stated.

However, the development would also formalise 19 parking spaces specifically for the club’s members, in addition to a smaller parking area currently in use on the south side of the venue, on Cold Well Road.