Work to turn old Post Office into flats, pub and takeaway could finally be under way

There could be light at the end of the tunnel for Lynn’s former Post Office building if a new planning application is anything to go by.The Lynn Athenaeum building on Baxter’s Plain has been the subject of much controversy in recent years, having lay empty since 2007.In 2022, its new owners were granted planning permission to convert it into a mixture of flats, a pub, wine bar and takeaway.

However, the successful applicant Feride Guccuk – a director of Devrim Enterprises – did not appear to have started any work at the site.But in the past few days, Devrim Enterprises has asked West Norfolk Council for some of the original conditions included in its planning permission to be discharged.This suggests that the company has finally kick-started a project which would revitalise a once-thriving site in the town centre. It is seeking permission to discharge four conditions – three related to contamination and one linked to drainage.A contaminated land technical survey carried out by Oakridge Environmental Services states that there is a “low risk” of contamination from hydrocarbon on the site from a “decommissioned oil boiler”. “There is therefore no evidence to suggest that there has been a significant release of hydrocarbons and the conceptual model remains at a low risk of contamination,” it says.“This was made on assumption that there will be no soft landscaping or ground floor gardens.”The contamination-related planning conditions mainly involved requirements for Devrim Enterprises to ensure assessments were carried out to determine if there are any risks in the building. Meanwhile, a new drainage report prepared by Orton Civil Design says existing sewers surrounding the old Post Office are “in serviceable condition”.“A series of rainwater pipes will be provided, utilising existing systems wherever possible, with additional high-level drains to collect deck, podium and green roof outlets,” it reads.The planning application for the conditions to be discharged is currently out for consultation, with that period ending on October 8.These updates will provide fresh hope that the derelict building could finally be given a new lease on life.If work goes ahead, 30 flats will be built across the first, second and third floors, with a pub, wine bar, other drinking premises and a hot food takeaway being set up in the ground floor.