Green light for flats to be demolished at busy Wisbech junction

A set of flats bought by Cambridgeshire County Council to enable a roundabout to be built are set for demolition.

The two-storey property at 218 Ramnoth Road, Wisbech, is a former shop converted into three flats.

An application seeking to determine whether prior approval is required for the demolition was submitted to Fenland Council by Victoria Bailey, on behalf of Cambridgeshire County Council.

The application form says the building was bought by the local authority to allow for the construction of a roundabout at the junction of Ramnoth Road with Churchill Road – however, the roundabout has since been deferred.

The junction is controlled by a new traffic lights scheme following completion of a new housing development off Churchill Road last summer, with drivers being forced to turn left out of Ramnoth Road, with no right turn or straight over options.

The application explains the council has no use for the building, which has been empty for some time, and now wants to demolish it in preparation for “future construction.” However, there is no indication of what that construction might be.

Once cleared, the site will remain in the ownership of the county council and will be laid out as green open space.

The application for prior approval was granted this week under delegated officer powers by Fenland District Council with a report commenting: “The submission satisfactorily addresses the method of demolition and proposed restoration of the site, accordingly prior approval can be granted.”