A sketch of how the front and rear of the wedding hall would look

A banqueting and wedding venue for Preston’s growing Asian community could be built in Deepdale.

Former industrial land in the east of the city has been earmarked for a 100+ guest wedding hall.

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The application is the second to be put forward for the former Harcross Mill site, after an initial bid by the Meena Charitable Foundation was unsuccessful in February due to fears over parking and the idea being labeled a “poor quality development” by planning officers.

The super-structure, built on an acre of disused industrial land on Campbell Street, would also host conferences and other community events.

View a map below showing the location of the proposed development

View Proposed location of Harcross Yard Asian wedding hall in a larger map

It would be be 53m long, 20m wide and at its highest reach 7.8m.

Writing in the plans, architect Mr Al-Samarraie of Archi-Structure in West Yorkshire, says the building will boost the area.

He said: “The proposal will contribute to the community regeneration needs of the area whilst also providing a purpose-built facility offering greater quality of services with additional capacity to meet future needs.

“This development represents a very strong social and community benefit to the local community.

“All facilities within the new development are open to the local community irrespective of their creed, colour or religion.”

The venue would be open from 10am to 6pm on weekdays and 10am to 10pm on Saturday and Sunday.

The previous application was partly rejected for fears over huge numbers of extra cars parking in the area.

A survey of car parking in the area shows the weekends see few cars parked on the surrounding streets, which are mainly occupied by industrial premises.

The Meenawala Charitable Foundation has not been far from the headlines with controversial planning applications.

It previously applied for a ‘mega mosque’ in Fulwood, off Sharoe Green Lane, in July 2010 but met strong objections from local councillors and residents.

The plans are on display on the council website and will go to the planning committee on the 9th January 2012.

If you wish to comment on the application you can write to the Planning Department, Environment Directorate, Lancastria House, 77-79 Lancaster Road, Preston, Pr1 2RH or email devcon@preston.gov.uk. You must include the application number 06/2011/0889 in any correspondence.

What do you think about the plans? Do you live in the area? Would you use the venue? Let us know your views in the comments below