ALLIANZ Insurance’s former offices in Liphook could soon be replaced with a mixed residential scheme after developers held pre-application talks with council planners about the ‘brownfield’ site.

The 1960s insurance offices in Haslemere Road and its car park have moved front and centre with developers after recent changes to the planning laws.

These make it easier to ‘change’ the legal planning use class of buildings, or sites, from business and employment to housing.

After the closure of the offices in December, the Ashill Group bought the site. Ashill says it focuses on high-quality residential developments on brownfield land, and aims to achieve this through community consultation.

Ashill planning spokesman Tracy Puttock said: “We have bought the site and are looking at a residential scheme on it.

“We have written to households around the building, and notified the parish council and had talks with East Hampshire District Council planners.

“There will be a wider consultation, including a question-and-answer session, later on.”

And the change in planning legislation has prompted another change of tack for a developer holding property in Liphook.

Graham Lord of Arthur Lord Organs purchased the properties at 1a to 5 London Road around 12 years ago with the intention of converting part of the site, the barn, into offices to rent.

But now he has applied to convert the barn behind the London Road frontage into three flats.

Bramshott and Liphook Parish Council planning committee member Simon Coyte said: “We don’t think the site is big enough for flats and associated car parking.

“So we are opposed to the proposal, but the final decision will be made by East Hampshire District Council planners.”