º£½ÇÊÓƵ

A die casting company with a history spanning 131 years and that employs 120 workers is set to demolish a foundry and workshop to pave the way for a new office building. The upgrade will take place at Lupton And Place's Athens View premises on Athletic Street, Burnley.

The project will enable the firm to construct high-quality office space and visitor facilities, complete with a new visible and welcoming entrance. The company's proposal for partial demolition of the existing foundry, removal of an existing portacabin, and construction of a new two-storey office block with ancillary parking has been greenlit by Burnley Council, subject to conditions.

Statements accompanying the planning application stated: "Lupton And Place propose to redevelop underused workshop/storage area to provide high-quality office space and visitor facilities."

The document outlined the new facility's features, including "a new, visible, and welcoming entrance; state of the art office and meeting space for managers and visitors; multi-purpose training and mess facilities; adequate toilet and shower facilities with lockers, including new Part T cubicles; and improved access to/from the shop floor, including dedicated toilets."

It also noted that "Removal of the existing offices will free up space for visitor parking and improve turning space in the delivery yard."

The report says the proposed solution is a "a new two-storey office building along Athletic Street on the footprint of an existing storage warehouse", with a flat roof to minimise impact on Athens View.

It adds: "The surrounding area is mixed in nature, with the industrial complex located in close proximity to existing dwellings and Towneley Park."

Lupton and Place was founded in Burnley in 1894 and moved to the current site on Athletic Street in 1984.