A shipping container café has been the centre of a lengthy planning battle – with some locals campaigning for it to demolished altogether
Residents have battled to tear down a seaside café near one of the UK’s “untouched” coastal treasures.
An enforcement notice has been issued against a shipping container café, by a popular beach in North Wales, which critics say ruins the stunning views. The controversial site was set up during summer 2024 by Ian and Alice Paice, who operate the Bert’s Kitchen Garden campsite near the stunning costal village of Trefor.
The shipping container was lifted into position onto a concrete base beside the beach that previously formed part of the area’s quarrying heritage. Running alongside it is the Wales Coast Path, which extends from Trefor to 150 acres of headland owned by the National Trust.
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The area’s most famous draw is the Trefor Sea Stacks (Ynys Fawr), a series of dramatic rocky formations beneath towering cliffs. Gwynedd Council stepped in following complaints that the café operated without proper permission and was causing traffic chaos and issued an enforcement notice, according to Wales Online.
A major worry was its impact on the local Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) – with the National Trust backing residents and arguing the site was “significantly detrimental” to a largely unspoilt countryside setting. Local commercial fishermen have rallied against the venture whilst community councillor Geraint Jones said it was situated on “one of the few places on this north coast that has not been ruined”.
The owners have mounted a second challenge against Gwynedd Council’s ruling, with Planning and Environment Decisions Wales (PEDW) currently reviewing the matter, according to North Wales Live. They argue the café operates within their wider campsite, which stretches approximately 300 metres through woodland to “Bert’s Beach” along the shoreline.
Legal representatives for the owners claimed the land had an exemption certificate and that material change of use wasn’t required since the café could be moved on castors, rendering it a temporary structure. Located on the former stockyard of Trefor granite quarry, beside its now demolished jetty, the café features Portaloo facilities and operates using a portable generator.
The owners insist the café’s main purpose is to “service the campsite” with occasional custom from coastal path ramblers. On it’s website, Bert’s Kitchen Garden emphasises the café received backing from Gwynedd Council’s Spark Fund to generate additional Welsh-speaking employment opportunities.
Through lifting and fitting castors to the metal container using the campsite tractor, Hafod Planning Consultants (HPC) insisted it remained fully mobile. The firm declared: “All elements can be moved to another part of the site or any other position by two people within an hour. This includes the relocation of boulders which are used to define the placement at any one time.”
HPC made comparisons with a Somerset case where mobile chicken sheds received approval on appeal. They highlighted the enforcement area at Trefor was subsequently expanded, which they viewed as a “tacit acknowledgement” that the container could be moved around the site – part of what they termed a “post-industrial landscape”.
The agents fought back against what they dubbed “frequently pejorative and unfounded” local complaints, declaring: “It has been evident over a number of years that there have been attempts to prevent the lawful development of Morfa Trefor. Despite the fact that there is a great deal of support in the village and the wider community – and indeed a good number of local employees who benefit from the business – there have been numerous attempts to weaponise the planning system and the planning process to prevent lawful use of the site.”
Local Philip Hope submitted a complaint with PEDW, branding the shipping container an “eyesore”. He claimed that during the summer months, the area “resembles an unlicenced traveller’s site”, adding: “Campervans strewn over the hardstanding, paying guests washing and drying their clothes, cooking and making excessive noise. This is not a suitable area for this, so close to the coastal path and National Trust land.”
This summer, the cafe was accompanied by a horsebox sauna on site, which is not part of the enforcement action. Mr Hope, who is calling for the campsite’s exemption certificate to be revoked in 2026, claimed that the café was contributing to the congestion in Trefor’s beach car park.
He said: “During the peak season it was chaotic, residents and commercial fisherman were unable to park, slipways and emergency services access were consistently blocked by private vehicles. Trefor, as a village, is not set up for this volume of tourism. The road system and infrastructure of the village was at breaking point during the peak holiday season.”
Other locals alleged there was little proof that the 2.5-tonne shipping container had ever been moved – a stance supported by Gwynedd Council. The local authority revealed that only ornamental wheels were permanently affixed – with silicone adhesive.
The council said: “The background history of the site shows the container has only been moved once over two years. In addition to this, a social media post by the appellant on the 13 November 2024 shows the container being moved using hired specialised equipment in the form of a lorry and ‘hiab’. The container is not therefore pushed or pulled on castor wheels and is not easily moveable by two people.”
HPC insisted castors were only fitted when necessary, arguing that a permanently wheeled container would pose safety risks given the site’s use by campers and other visitors. The agents argued: “The claims that the coastal position has a significant impact must be measured against the impact of several campervans and their paraphernalia or boats and watercraft used by campers at the same site.”
But Gwynedd Council stood firm that the container did have a major impact on the “character and visual amenity” of the area. The council added: “No conditions could be imposed on any retrospective planning application to make the development acceptable in planning terms.”
