A LADNMARK Runcorn building which became the town's first library and later its town hall could be bulldozed after falling into disrepair.

A planning application has been submitted to flatten Waterloo House on Waterloo Road and carry out repairs to the neighbouring Grade II-listed Carnegie Library.

Dating back to the 1830s, Waterloo House was built by Charles Hazelhurst, a local soap and alkali manufacturer.  It was later converted for use as the Runcorn’s Town Hall between 1874 to 1933.

It is previously thought to have housed the town's original lending library which opened in 1882, and most recently used as a community centre before having to be closed down due to structural problems in 2004.

Even though the building itself is not listed, the plans will require listed building consent so repairs can be made to the adjoining Carnegie Library on Egerton Street. It was built in 1906 with money donated by Scottish American businessman Andrew Carnegie. It was the main library in Runcorn until a larger library was opened in the 1970s at Halton Lea. It first became a branch library, then closed as a library in 2012. The building was awarded Grade II listed status in 2007.

A planning report submitted in support of the application by Cassidy & Ashton, said: “The condition of the Waterloo building has significantly declined to such a point the building control at Halton Council have expressed concerns regarding its safety. This has resulted in a partial road closure being put in place in case the building falls down.

“The applicants would like to safely dismantle the Waterloo building so ensure no risk to life and to ensure no damage is made to the adjacent listed building the Egerton Library.”

In 2020, plans were submitted by Signature Housing to knock down the Waterloo Centre and replace it with flats for people with early onset dementia and other specialist support needs. As part of the plans, the developer also proposed refurbishing the Carnegie Library so it could be used as a “community hub”.

Campaign group Save Britain’s Heritage added both Waterloo and Carnegie Library were added to its ‘Buildings at Risk Register’ in 2015, previously stating: “We consider that the demolition of Waterloo House would result in harm to the character and appearance of the Old Town of Runcorn and would have an adverse impact on the setting of Carnegie Library as well as damage to its fabric.”

A Halton Council spokeswoman said: “The Waterloo Building has been vacant since 2004/5 and, in that time, we have been unable to find a viable use or occupier for the building and, without that, we have been unable to secure the significant funding needed to renovate the building.

"Our first priority has to be to the safety of the public and therefore a cordon has been created around the building to keep people away, and hence an application has been submitted to demolish the building."