The owners of the Merton Hotel received permission to knock down part of St Juste, one of only four examples of the cottage ornée style left in the Island, to make way for an indoor bowls hall.
The National Trust for Jersey, Save Jersey’s Heritage and the environment section of the Société Jersiaise had previously put pressure on the minister to save the building of local interest.
They said that demolishing three of the external support walls to the east elevation would damage the character and integrity of the building and result in ‘an unnecessary and unjustified loss of historic fabric’.
At a ministerial meeting on Friday, Senator Cohen approved – subject to conditions – the application for St Juste and plans to refurbish La Fantasie, a site of special interest, into six staff flats.
A planning officer had recommended approval of the plans, saying that ‘the gains of the two historic buildings would be greater than the losses, if permission was granted’.
