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Debate on plans for Spalding's former sorting office




A debate is raging over the future of Spalding’s old sorting office building - with objections raised to the plans to revamp the derelict building.

A developer is looking for permission to transform the prominent building into flats and a shop and has released images of its proposed new design which it says ‘celebrates’ the building’s past.

Spalding and District Civic Society opposes the plans and said it’s wrong to try to keep the structure, in The Crescent, which it feels has a ‘negative impact’ on the town’s Conservation Area.

An artist's impression of the former sorting office in Spalding which features in documents lodged with South Holland District Council by Zeal Wilkes.
An artist's impression of the former sorting office in Spalding which features in documents lodged with South Holland District Council by Zeal Wilkes.

In its submission to South Holland District Council, the society said: “Under no stretch of the imagination could the sorting office be described as a heritage asset.”

The council’s conservation officer has said he feels the plans would tidy up an eyesore and supports the proposals - however highways bosses want changes to the parking arrangements, with concerns over three spaces proposed to run parallel to the pavement in Spring Gardens which it feels as ‘unacceptable’.

The civic society says it has no objection to the principle of flats and shops on the site - and that its issue is only with keeping the building and using this 'post war utility design' as the basis for the development.

An artist's impression of the former sorting office in Spalding which features in documents lodged with South Holland District Council by Zeal Wilkes. (53994517)
An artist's impression of the former sorting office in Spalding which features in documents lodged with South Holland District Council by Zeal Wilkes. (53994517)

It has also raised issues with the specific design of the flats and the sustainability of elements of the development such as ventilation, insulation and lighting.

It stated: “In conclusion, the application seeks ‘to celebrate’ what was in fact the wrong building in the wrong place at the outset.

“All it does is tinker with the exterior whilst the proposed interior layout is ill devised and unsustainable.

“The supposed justification for retaining the building is fundamentally flawed.”

Plans show the proposed parking at the former sorting office in Spalding. (53996030)
Plans show the proposed parking at the former sorting office in Spalding. (53996030)


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