A RESTAURANT chain hoping to open in Reading town centre has submitted a fresh planning application to the council.
Fat Hippo already has branches London, Birmingham, Newcastle, Cardiff, and Glasgow, and has set its sights on the Jackson’s development on Kings Road.
Its initial application was rejected by Reading Borough Council’s planning department. It wanted to replace the green and gold Jackson’s Corner branding with its own, but officers felt this would fail to integrate with the rest of the development.
Due its history Jackson’s Corner is a Reading landmark, however it is not a listed building.
Issues were also raised over the noise disturbance generated by a kitchen extraction unit that Fat Hippo would need, as apartments will be above the restaurant.
Following the refusal in February, Fat Hippo has submitted a fresh plan for the unit including submission of a noise assessment for its proposed extraction unit.
The installation of a branded awning remains in the latest plan, with the shopfront being painted black and existing tiles to the base plinth being retained.
The refused application is number 221373, while the new submission is 230574, and both can be viewed on Reading Borough Council’s planning website.
