A two storey restaurant could be built at Horseshoe Beach by the summer, if an application now before Planning is approved.The South Shore Hospitality Group is hoping to transform the concessions stand now at the western end of the popular Southampton beach, into a 130-seat facility offering take-out and sit-down dining.If approved, the facility would sit on nearly 15,000 sq ft, with 4,000 sq ft set aside for dining. The area being considered for development is currently zoned as open space and national parkland. Project architect Michael Somers said yesterday that the group plans to have the facility completed as soon as possible.“They hope possibly to be done by the next tourist season, although that may be a little ambitious,” he said.The present facility, the Horseshoe Bay Beach House, covers just over 5,000sq feet.South Shore Hospitality Group proposes a two storey restaurant with 130 seats, and a one storey section enclosing new bathrooms. Take-out food would be served for breakfast and lunch, with staff on hand for sit-down meals in the evening.A new indoor and outdoor seating area would have retracting walls and “extensive glass”, and a new rental and gift shop is planned. Exterior seating decks to the south of the current Beach House are to be retained.The facility would have a boardwalk for easier access, plus drainage to stop flooding, a new septic system and solar heating for showers.The existing parking lot is to be expanded, with 102 new cycle spaces, five extra spaces for cars, and a ten-foot retaining wall.The application says the new beach house is intended to be “of an overshadowed and dark appearance”, with wooden verandahs and shutters to soften its appearance.The replacement would follow the contours of the existing facility. Proposals to add a bar to Horseshoe Beach have been heatedly opposed in the past. It could not be confirmed yesterday whether or not developers will seek a liquor license for the new facility.Lawyer Philip Perinchief, who is a consultant to the applicants, directed questions to the Ministry of Public Works, saying that the Bermuda Government is the landlord for the site.As a justification for development, the application cites an increase in the number of visitors to Horseshoe Bay and says tourists have complained of overflowing bathrooms and a general deterioration of the existing beach house.It says the existing concession is in “a poor state of repair”, with a food service that “works heroically to produce up to 1,500 lunches a day during peak summer occupancy, from a substandard and undersized kitchen”.This “compromises enjoyment of the park and its natural setting”.The application says the new facility would create more jobs and bring essential services to a popular area, as well as provide support for lifeguards.Since it would be built on an existing site, the applicants say that intrusion on the natural environment would be limited.The application also says that the Department of Environmental Health and the Department of Parks were consulted before the January 4 submission to Planning.The existing cafeteria and public bathrooms will be demolished if the plans are accepted, with cedars and other native vegetation re-planted.