Plans to convert an Ipswich pub into flats have been resubmitted after being rejected earlier this year.

An application was originally submitted in December 2023 to turn The Railway Hotel, a former Cobbold pub on Foxhall Road, into two separate flats along with changes to the garage and outbuilding.

It was refused by Ipswich Borough Council as it fell out of several design and development policies for the town. 

The applicant Mario Santoro has resubmitted the plans through agents Plans4me Ltd.

In the plans, agent Joe Tynan wrote: "I felt the previous rejected planning application for the side extension was somewhat justified.

"It was like a wooden-clad house slapped onto the pub.

"The new design incorporates the side access. It is set back from the original frontage. The two-storey element, the top flat, is on the same footprint as the toilet block below."

He added that this is a positive development as the pub will be reutilised instead of being an abandoned building. 

The application proposes building a two-side extension comprising a garage, bin store, and ancillary storage.

The first floor of the main building will have two separate flats, both with two bedrooms and dining spaces. 

The plans propose changing the current bar area into sitting areas for people to relax, as well as transforming the current toilet block into an ensuite bedroom with a dining space.

Meanwhile, they say the front porch will be converted to have space for a disabled ramp, and to add an existing garage that will be used for bin storage and more parking. 

There are currently four parking spaces at the site, with the developer planning to include four more, as well as 10 cycle storage spaces.

Francis Rossi, left, and John Edwards, right, of Status Quo, playing the Railway pub before it closed its doors in 2013. Francis Rossi, left, and John Edwards, right, of Status Quo, playing the Railway pub before it closed its doors in 2013.  (Image: Archant)  The Railway Hotel dates to 1877 and made a name for itself over the years as it became a go-to destination for live music.

In the 2010s, the pub hosted big-name rock bands such as Status Quo and Big Country.

However, it was listed for sale in 2022 when its former landlords Steve and Sue Preston announced that the venue would be closing.