Overview
- A landlord, Pearl & Coutts, submitted a planning application in July to convert the vault used in the 2015 Hatton Garden raid into an underground, robbery‑themed bar that would incorporate surviving crime‑scene features.
- The proposal would remove the E Katz & Co retail unit above the vault to create stair and lift access to the basement, a change the Katz family says would force the closure of their shop founded in 1946.
- Planning documents show the venue would keep original elements from the heist such as a broken gate, a drilled hole and safety deposit boxes, and would propose daytime public tours of the vault.
- Public consultation on the application closed on 30 August and Camden Council has said officers will assess the plans against development policies while seeking to protect existing Hatton Garden jewellery businesses.
- Local jewellers including E Katz & Co and Henig Diamonds describe the idea as ghastly and disrespectful, warning that approving the change could weaken the area’s jewellery trade and commercial heritage.