CONTROVERSIAL plans to transform a disused pub into an equestrian centre were given the go-ahead on Tuesday evening.
The proposals will see the derelict Wheatsheaf in Rettendon turned into a riding centre, as well as provide the community with a restaurant, a post office and two shops.
At the packed-out planning meeting at Chelmsford's Civic Centre residents spilled into another room to watch it on a TV.
Multi-millionaire David Bishop, 62, says he will spend £500,000 of his own money transforming the pub, on Main Road, which ceased trading in 2006 and was sold at auction two years later.
Mr Bishop wants to hand over the running of the equestrian centre to a charity after it is built and said it was a "great move forward" for the village of 600.
"Thank God it's through now," said Mr Bishop. "Let's get on and build it.
"We've had such a lot of support from the village.
"I was at the point of giving up because it all got very nasty but I'm delighted now."
The proposal was originally refused planning permission back in June 2012. Although planning bosses acknowledged that the scheme would "provide benefits to the local community", the scale was considered harmful to the character of the area.
Despite the plans being tweaked, Rettendon Parish Council continued to push the city council into refusing the proposals – citing traffic and aesthetic concerns.
But throughout the meeting many residents expressed their excitement at the prospect of nearby shops, while local horse riders were keen to use the centre.
The chief executive of Essex Nursing Services, Suzanne Dakers, said her patients would benefit from riding at the centre.
After the meeting she told the Chronicle: "It's brilliant, it was the right decision."
Last month, the Chronicle revealed the plans had generated a lot of animosity in the village.
Roy Hart, 67, a Rettendon parish councillor in opposition to applicant David Bishop's development, said the transformation looked like a "stepping stone" to a bigger complex.
"In five years' time we think it's going to be a sprawl of retail on the site," he said.
But he added: "We did fight a long and hard campaign and we lost – and if you lose you lose. I wish them well. I don't bear any animosity to Mr Bishop – he fought a very hard campaign."
