RHYL Golf Club’s plans to demolish and replace much of its existing clubhouse have been approved.

The proposals, submitted in March to Denbighshire County Council’s planning committee, would see a first floor storey created for use by the club and as a function space, as well as a new entrance foyer and balcony.

Planning permission was granted by the council today (October 27).

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The proposed works will involve the complete demolition of the bar and office areas, partial demolition of the kitchen area along the eastern elevations, and the removal of the portico by the front entrance.

Further works will involve the erection of a second-floor level, new roofing, a front entrance extension and a new balcony along the north eastern elevation.          

While £92million coastal defence works are carried out in Denbighshire, Rhyl Golf Club is currently closed, and has been since December 31, 2022.

It plans to re-open on April 1, 2024, with ambitions of becoming the UK’s first carbon-neutral golf club.

Extracts from the application’s design and access statement read that this re-development is required due to:

  • The age and deterioration of the building and, in particular, its timber frame elements.
  • The roof structure having coming to the end of its useful life.
  • The major civil engineering works to create a flood defence bund involving heavy vehicles and materials, which cause damage to the existing building.
  • The current building not being fit for purpose due to its layout and specification.
  • The current building not being thermally efficient.
  • The current needing re-development to continue providing an additional use as community facility.

The statement added: “The proposed scheme will improve accessibility, improve security and safeguarding, longevity of the golf club and allow needed repairs and maintenance.

“The sea defence works will characteristically alter the style and function of the golf club.

“It is intended to install a first floor level to allow a ‘view’ over the new seal wall which would not be possible from the existing single-storey building.

“The proposed alterations, extensions and refurbishments will ensure the golf club can remain open, profitable and modernised for the future golfers in Rhyl and beyond.”

When consulted on the plans, Natural Resources Wales said it was “satisfied that the proposal is acceptable in terms of flood risk”.

Previously, marketing officer Mike Pritchard told the Journal that the club’s aim is "to get as green as we possibly can".

Rhyl Golf Club, a nine-hole course which is North Wales’ oldest having been in existence since 1890, was previously earmarked as a potential flood plain.