A bid to change some of the signage on the former Berwick Advertiser offices in the heart of the town has sparked a planning row.
The Berwick Advertiser and Berwickshire News moved out of the premises, on the northern side of Marygate, in 2014 and relocated to the neighbouring Berwick Workspace.
But the three-storey, stone-built, late Victorian structure, which is immediately obvious to people entering the town across the Royal Tweed Bridge, has until now retained the names of both newspapers on the frontage.
Applicant Jonathan Cawthorn wants to replace the Berwickshire News lettering with Tweedmouth Dental Clinic in a similar style, while retaining the Berwick Advertiser wording.
The proposal has sparked objections from the Berwick-upon-Tweed Civic Society and the Conservation Area Advisory Group, highlighting the loss of sense of place and cultural heritage, its illogicality and irrationality, and the potential cause of confusion, due to its reference to Tweedmouth - a distinct area south of the river.
However, the application is recommended for approval when it goes before the North Northumberland Local Area Council on Thursday.
The planning officer's report states: "While the proposed works change the existing signage to the advertisement of a new business, the proposal retains much of the sense of place in the locality by detailing proposed signage that maintains the style of the existing lettering while also preserving the upper-tier Berwick Advertiser and Est 1869 signage.
"It is officer opinion that the cultural heritage and sense of place will be maintained by these aspects of the proposal while also contributing to local amenity and sense of place by bringing an existing empty business unit into use."
The response from the council's building conservation team says the scheme would result in 'less than substantial harm' as 'we recognise the loss of the existing signage would give rise to a loss of cultural and historic significance'.
It adds that in line with national policy, the 'decision-maker will need to weigh the harm to the non-designated heritage asset'.
