RESIDENTS in one corner of Sandy are getting hot under the collar about plans for a curry house near their homes. Now Sandy Town Council has stepped in and poured cold water on the plan after recommending to Mid Beds District Council not to support planni

RESIDENTS in one corner of Sandy are getting hot under the collar about plans for a curry house near their homes.

Now Sandy Town Council has stepped in and poured cold water on the plan after recommending to Mid Beds District Council not to support planning permission for the Indian restaurant on the site of the New Inn in St Neots Road.

The old pub has been empty for the past two years but residents say it has a chequered history with drunkenness and fighting before it finally closed its doors.

A man from St Neots applied to convert the building into a restaurant but members of the town's planning, parks and open spaces committee unanimously opposed the planning application on Monday night.

"We have informed Mid Beds District Council that we object to this planning application on the grounds it is too close to the junction with the A1 and poses a number of dangers when it comes to access to the building," said town council clerk Trevor Stewart.

"There would be inadequate parking for a restaurant and we have also had to think of people in the area and the noise and pollution it would create.

"We have had a number of letters from local residents all opposing the planning application and councillors were unanimous when they rejected the plans."

Local resident Richard O'Neill, who has lived almost next door to the old pub for 38 years and his father for 50 years, said: "The road backs on to the A1 slip road and cars come off the main road very fast.

"We have had accidents here in the past when cars and vehicles have hit houses and the pub and this would be another major accident just waiting to happen.

"It was bad enough when it was a pub and just went downhill with late night fighting in the streets and people drunk and acting like idiots.

"We have had a few years of peace and want to keep it that way. It is a bad site for a restaurant, there is poor parking and access on to a very busy road where cars and lorries travel very fast when they come off the A1 into Sandy.

"There is no need for this restaurant in the community and the best thing they could do with the old pub is knock it down and build houses or flats.