Councillors to decide on plans to redevelop old Maldon police station, more than four years after it became vacant

Maldon's former police station could soon be transformed into offices, under new plans to redevelop the site more than four years after it first became vacant.

Maldon District Council's central area planning committee is set to vote on the plans for the building, which can be found on West Square, next Wednesday (16 March).

The redevelopment would see the creation of 26 full-time and two part-time jobs in the building and has already been praised by Maldon Town Council, who recommended the bid for approval in January.

Speaking at a planning meeting on 24 January, Councillor Michael Pearlman, who represents Maldon North, said: "This is like a breath of fresh air, at long last. This really ticks all the boxes for approval."

TFP Financial Planning submitted the plans to redevelop the building in December last year as the company wants to move from Maldon High Street to larger premises.

It hopes to move into the ground floor of the former police station, with 12 full-time and two part-time employees, and rent out the first floor office space to other local businesses - allowing for around 14 full-time employees spread over four offices.

The proposed hours of operation would be normal office hours, between 8.30am and 5.30pm on Mondays to Fridays.

It follows the closure of Maldon Police Station in July 2017, when a new police base opened in the district council offices on Princes Road.

A statement submitted with the latest proposal says the "landmark building" has since been "boarded up, vacant for over four-and-a-half years, and vulnerable to damage, decay and vandalism".

It says: "In respect of the Maldon site, its closure was due to the fact that the building was no longer suitable for modern policing, no longer required for the future Essex Police Estates Strategy and declared surplus to operational requirements."

It adds: "There were no staffing or resource implications as all staff were located to alternative policing locations and the front counter provision and operation functions were relocated to accommodation within the Maldon District Council offices."

An application to convert the former station into five self-contained apartments was refused in October 2020 for reasons including the loss of employment space and a community facility.

The new application is for change of use into offices.

In a letter of support, one resident said the plans would "bring life back into a valued building of the community".

She said: "I believe that the police station property is such an important part of the high street, standing at the entry of the road, at the moment looking very dilapidated and, from reading, has been confirmed as not fit for purpose with regards to modern policing.

"As this will bring a wider office space into the Maldon area, it will allow for local businesses to find a home on the high street and within this community."

Recommending the plans for approval, district council officers also said the redevelopment would bring the building "back into a viable use".

They added: "The change of use from a police station to offices would not result in any detrimental impact in terms of noise, or pollution.

"As the operating hours are limited, as opposed to the 24 hour operations of the police service when on site, any noise would be significantly less, including traffic movements."

The external appearance of the building and the existing car park would not be changed if the plans were to go ahead.

Maldon District Council will make the final decision on Wednesday, 16 March.

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