Café could close as building goes under offer

WORDS BY JACKY HAYLER PHOTO BY PAUL KING

Shockwaves have gone through the Wokingham community with the news that it looks like the Cantley Park café could close for good.

Owned and run by Wokingham Borough Council, the premises at Cantley Park Pavillion became available to let on the Zoopla website a few weeks ago for £22,000 per year. Now agents Page Hardy Harris has the property ‘under offer’.

My Wokingham spoke to the letting agents but were unable to confirm any details about the potential new tenant.

One person who works at the café said: “We are very sad that it will close.” And added: “I don’t understand – it is very busy here at the weekends. We are usually full up on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, not just with sporting events but with people taking walks in the park. They will have nowhere else to go.” And she added that upstairs from the café is a space used by other community groups from around the area that could face look- ing for new homes.

The advert for the property states Cantley Park Pavillion is a spacious unit across ground and first floors, which is predominantly open plan with the flexibility to be easily divided or opened out further. The unit comes with an abundance of parking including ev charging points. Added features include kitchens on both ground and first floor, a balcony on the first floor and an external paved area to the front for outdoor seating. The premises looks onto the sports pitches which are typically fully booked.

A £1.6 million investment in Cantley was approved by the council in 2020 which included an upgrade to the pavilion.

My Wokingham spoke to Wokingham Borough Council for a comment but was still waiting at the time of going to press.