PLANS to convert a former Weymouth nightclub and bar into four 2-bed town houses have been approved.

The application, for Chic in Maiden Street, has been the site of various nightclubs for sixty years, but is said to be no longer viable following changes to the town’s night economy.

A previous application for six houses had attracted objections from the town council and town’s Civic Society, which was then withdrawn.

Construction work for the approved four homes will be carried out in two phases – the first for the conversion of two units off New Street, followed by the other two houses accessed off Maiden Street.

Weymouth Town Council had supported the smaller application, although had raised concerns about the original proposals fearing that the six houses would be too cramped.

Most of the alterations to the building, which wraps around Maiden Street into New Street, will internal with the outside remaining much as it now is, although with the addition of some new windows.

Said the agent, Nigel Trent, acting for the owner: “The alterations will not have a negative impact on the character of the conservation area. Replacing the nightclub use with domestic use will have less of an impact on neighbours.”

The club has suffered well documented problems over recent years, being shut down in December 2021 after police became concerned about drug dealing while the owner was away on holiday.

It was later allowed to reopen, re-named as the Chic Bar and Club, but with reduced hours and increased security.

Owner Mr Parviz Panjalizadeh-Marseh later persuaded a Dorset Council licensing panel to extend his hours, claiming that with the new security measures, his premises was the safest in town.