A former owner of the Chambers shop in Dereham has spoken of his delight that it is set for a new life as it is revealed that an application has been submitted to change its use from retail to restaurant.
Colin Chambers, whose family ran the Market Place newsagents, stationer and bookshop from 1950 until 1993, said 'any use would be good ... to bring back the hum and buzz of people' and that he had been very impressed with its ongoing refurbishment.
While the architects who submitted the application to Breckland Council on behalf of owners D&A (2127) Ltd, based in London, were unable to confirm a definite new tenant, a spokesman said 'there may be more than one business interested'.
Mr Chambers, who still lives in Dereham, said he had happy memories of his time at the shop, also living in a flat upstairs for 10 years and raising a family there.
'They are doing a very good job on it,' he said. 'They have gutted it and it is now a large square empty box but they are doing it very tastefully and have left the shop front.
'I had the chance to look round and I think my old bedroom and children's nursery are still intact in the loft space - but I couldn't get up there.
'I remember having to climb out of the kitchen window to get onto the flat roof, and the sloping floors. We had castors on the children's beds and they used to slide across the floor. Wallpapering was always difficult because there was two inches difference on each length of paper. I can't forget the rats running up and down the walls either.
'But it is time for it to have a new life and any use would be good.
'It will be good to bring back the hum and buzz of people there again - that is what it needs and what it is for. I don't mind what it is used for as long as it is living again.'
A spokesman for agents and architects Le Sage Associates from Peterborough said no lease had yet been signed.
'That won't happen until Breckland gives permission for the change of use,' he said.
'It is a case of widening its appeal to bring potential tenants into the unit which has been empty for some time.
'I can't confirm who it might be at this stage as there may be more than one business interested.
'It appears that there was not enough interest in it as a retail unit so the change of use widens the market. Nothing has been signed and sealed.'
* What sort of restaurant would you like to see? Email kathryn.cross@archant.co.uk.
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