It comes 10-years after the owners were last granted permission to demolish the hotel and replace it with homes, but no work commenced, and the permission lapsed in 2017.
But now a full development framework guiding future housing allocation on the site is being drafted so the applicants – St Martins Hotel (1987) Ltd – are seeking to clear the 7.6 vergées site in anticipation of this.
The redundant hotel has been empty for a decade and has suffered significant structural damage due to fires in that period, leaving the structures in disrepair.
The loss of trees which must make way for future work will be mitigated by a comprehensive planting scheme in future, the application states.
Other protected trees left on site will be retained through root protection areas and a construction exclusion zone.