Last updated at 16:26, Wednesday, 27 February 2013

POLICE cells are set to be turned into bedrooms as part of a house conversion project.

BEDDING DOWN Millom Police Station, which could be converted into flats under new plans IAN DUNSTAN REF: 50045005B001

Subject to planning permission, the former Millom police station and magistrates’ court building will be transformed into five houses after it was bought by John and Ruth Cullen, from The Green, and their property-developer brother-in-law Guy Davis.

Mr Davis told the Evening Mail that the original plans had been to demolish the Station Road building but the team decided against the move in a bid to retain the building’s character.

Mr Davis, whose wife is from Millom, is a frequent visitor to the area.

He decided to take a chance on the building after hearing that it failed to sell when it went under the hammer in September.

He said: “Shortly before Christmas, John happened to mention that the police station and magistrates’ court building was up for sale and hadn’t sold at auction.

“I said it looked like a fantastic plot in a fantastic location, and that maybe we could do something with it.

“Because it was quite a large plot, I thought we could knock the building down and create some new town houses.

“However, when I started to walk round the property with John and Ruth, it’s one of those wonderful properties that you can instantly fall in love with. There are so many original features going back to the 1890s, when it was constructed.

“While it may have been more profitable to knock down the building and do a new build, the reality is it is such a beautiful building that we thought it would be a terrible shame to do that.

“We’re very excited with the plans we’ve come up with. The exterior of the building will change very little, so we’ll retain the character. With the original police cells, we intend to knock through to create two bedrooms and a bathroom.

“The court is a fantastically large room and we’re going to put in a raised floor so you’ll have a very large kitchen-cum-lounge upstairs with the bedrooms downstairs.”

Mr Davis said the houses will be ‘priced to sell’, adding: “We think it will be something a little bit different and perhaps quirky, from the norm in Millom.’’

First published at 16:13, Wednesday, 27 February 2013
Published by http://www.nwemail.co.uk