A PUB building that dates back to the 1790s could be converted into a community centre if newly submitted plans are approved.

The Green Man on Otley Road, Undercliffe was recently closed, and put on the market by former owners Tetleys Brewery.

It was listed for sale for much of last year.

This week a planning application has been submitted to Bradford Council calling for the change of use of the building, near the junction with Northcote Road, from a drinking establishment to an educational/community centre.

The application has been submitted by Muhammed Rzvi of charity the Al-Faiz Trust and would see the ground floor of the building converted into a community hall.

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The first floor would be converted into classrooms, offices and a kitchen.

The planning application says: “The property sits near the busy junction of Otley Road with Idle Road.

“Otley Road is a mixed-use road that consists of shops, take aways terraced houses and flats.

“It was proposed by our client to convert the vacant pub into an educational/community centre. The centre will provide classes and support covering a wide spectrum including religion, charity, disabilities and first aid.

“Guest speakers will also be invited to the centre to give talks for the local community.

“The existing site has a substantial car park that will remain unaffected by the proposed conversion.

“It is very important to match new buildings with existing buildings in the area. Every effort has been made in the design of this building to match and complement the existing buildings in the street and surrounding area.”

A decision on the application is expected in June.

The Green Man is named after the centuries old symbol of re-birth that adorns many churches.

The pub itself has a storied history. Last year Paul Jennings, author of Bradford Pubs and The Local: A History of the English Pub, looked at the story as part of a regular column in the Telegraph & Argus.

He had noted that the pub was for sale, and decided to investigate its pars.

He said: “It dates back to 1796, when one Zacharias Harrison, a clothier, took a 999-year lease from Bradford’s Lord of the Manor, Benjamin Rawson, on land at Undercliffe, part of the Bradford Common or Moor.

“On it he built the public house, in a good location on the main road towards Otley and Harrogate and beyond, which was first known as the Rifleman, reflecting perhaps the fact that the country was then at war with France.

“From its prominent position overlooking Bradford it has witnessed its transformation from small town to great city and many notable events.

“One in particular caught my eye, reported in the Bradford Observer in May 1844, reflecting local tensions at this period between the native-born English and Irish migrants.

“It tells of how the band of the Undercliffe Orange Lodge, returning from a mass demonstration of Orangemen in the town, was attacked lower down Otley Road by a crowd of between 200 and 400 Catholic Irishmen armed with stones and cudgels, forcing them to retreat up the hill to their base at the Green Man.”