A ‘DANGEROUS’ air conditioning unit left hanging by a cable after falling off the side of a ‘derelict’ Winsford nightclub has been removed.
The unit was mounted high on a wall of the former Liquid Lounge building, about 12 feet above the pavement on New Road, which is in a residential area.
Officers from Chester West and Chester Council visited the site on Tuesday, July 16, and have confirmed the unit has now been removed.
The building has had a turbulent history since the club closed in 2008, having been gutted by fire in 2013, and later becoming a focal point for antisocial behaviour and fly tipping.
CWAC imposed an order on Liquid Lounge’s owners to get the site cleared up in August 2018, and they were subsequently taken to court in October 2019 for failing to comply.
Outline planning permission was granted in November 2021 for a residential development on the site which would have seen the building demolished and replaced with 12 flats.
The planning officer’s report said: “The replacement of this building with residential development will be in accordance with policy and have a positive impact on the street scene, and entrance to the existing development.”
No visible progress has been made on the project to date, though the planning permission will remain in place until November this year.
Cllr Stuart Bingham, for the Over and Verdin ward, said: “This is building has been a safety concerns for many years and the council has used its powers to force the owners to deal with it.
“On at least one occasion, the council took direct action to seal the building to stop children playing inside.
“I reported the latest deterioration to our enforcement teams to get the building looked at again.
“In the meantime, I would ask the owners to make the building safe and prevent any of it falling into the street.
“It is completely unacceptable that people should be put at risk by derelict building.”
A spokesman for Cheshire West and Chester Council said: “An officer visited the site yesterday and the air conditioning unit has been removed.”
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