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An ‘eyesore’ pub left empty for more than a decade will finally be demolished to make way for a new shop and flats.

The fire-damaged remains of the former Merrivale pub in Oldbury, which has lay empty since 2013, would be knocked down and the site given a new lease of life under new plans by ‘upmarket’ grocery shop Simply Fresh.

Sandwell Council’s planning committee unanimously approved the plans at a meeting on Wednesday (October 22) nearly two years after they were submitted.

Cllr Jenny Chidley, who represents the Wednesbury South ward, said: “I think this is a very good idea… it’s an eyesore. It’s much-needed.”

In a report, the local authority’s planning officers had recommended the application was approved.

The plans initially proposed a larger four-storey building wi

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