PLANS have been submitted to convert the former Lloyds Bank building in Melksham’s town centre into seven flats, providing both one and two-bedroom apartments.
The building, located on the High Street, has been vacant since the closure of the town’s last bank in February last year.
When news of the bank’s closure was made, there were calls for the building to be made into a banking hub, providing banking facilities for all the closed banks in the town.
Local MP, Michelle Donelan, spearheaded the campaign, but Melksham was not eligible because the town already has building societies.
Other suggestions made by local people, who were keen for the historic building to be put to good use, included a restaurant, wine bar and community hub.
Speaking about the plans for the building, Melksham’s mayor cllr Simon Crundell said, “I was disappointed to see that this beautiful building in the very heart of our town is likely to become housing.
“I do understand the need for housing, especially aimed at the rental and first-time buyer market. As mayor, and as a town council, Melksham has no power to dictate what can and cannot be done with privately-owned buildings. I only hope that the housing that is put into the building is affordable and the build itself is sympathetic to the heritage and beauty of this replica of a local stately home.”
The planning application proposes to turn the 100-year-old building into a mixture of one and two bed apartments, with a lift for access. Five of the flats will have pedestrian access via Place Road, to the side of the building, whilst two flats will have access via the High Street. Vehicle access will also be via Place Road.
The planning application states, “After a lengthy period of marketing with zero enquiries we have reached the conclusion that due to the scale of the building itself and the current retail decline in the area especially on Melksham High Street, the commercial use of the premises is no longer viable.”
Residents on Place Road have raised concerns about the increase of congestion the flats could bring to the street.
One resident said, “Place Road is not a public highway, there is no right of way except for the residents to access their properties. There is nowhere for builders or lorries to park either. Any disregard for the residents would not be tolerated.”
Another resident has suggested less flats could be developed in the building to ease the congestion along Place Road.
The resident said, “We have lived on Place Road for 17 years and already suffer from people parking on the street, dangerously blocking access to emergency vehicles and making life difficult for recycling and refuse vans. It would be great to see the building used for something, a maximum of two to three bed apartments should be considered, plus the taxi rank moved to facilitate the building work this would entail.”
To view the proposal, visit Wiltshire Council’s planning portal using the reference: PL/2023/05351
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