Former Caterer Adopted Business the Appletree in Yorkshire is set to close after its proprietors failed to negotiate a new lease agreement with landlord Orchard Inns.
Husband and wife TJ and Melanie Drew joined the gastro pub in Marton, north Yorkshire, as managers in 2001.
In summer 2006 the couple signed a temporary lease with Orchard Inns, reopening the property as proprietors after an extensive refurbishment.
The Drews were then in negotiations over a full lease for the Appletree, which last year was named National Dining Pub of the Year by the Good Pub Guide, but discussions collapsed forcing them to close the business.
Melanie Drew said the reason for the collapse was the refusal of the landlord to include the 1954 Landlord and Tenant Act in the lease agreement, which gives tenants the right to renew a lease.
“The landlord offered us a seven year lease without the option of renewal and we felt that this would put our business in jeopardy,” she told Caterersearch. “We are left with no alternative but to close the Appletree and leave.”
Katie Wallace, negotiator at Christie & Co, said the Drews made the right decision.
“With a long lease in place the omission of the 1954 Landlord and Tenant Act is less of an issue than with such a short lease,” she said.
Melanie Drew added she hoped to reopen the Appletree soon and said the couple had already earmarked possible sites in Yorkshire.
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By Kerstin Kühn
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