Demolition work is under way at a youth and community centre at the former Gedling railway station. Gedling Youth and Community Hub on Shearing Hill has applied for planning permission to breathe new life into the historic site.
The existing gymnasium is being demolished and the planning application seeks permission for the construction of a new canopy and entrance lobby, and use of first floor rooms as commercial office space - creating a "community hub". Chair of the management committee at the centre, Francis Rodrigues, said: "We had carried out repairs to stop leaks (at the gym) but it has got to the stage where we had a structural engineer's report and they said it was unsafe structure.
"We moved fairly quickly after that to get it demolished. The trustees appointed a contractor to come in and take it down."
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The gym extension was built in 1967 and had a flat roof which caused leaks through the years. Mr Rodrigues said Gedling Youth and Community Hub has put in a bid for National Heritage Lottery funding of £249,000 to restore the station and kitchen.
The centre has also been shortlisted by Gedling Borough Council for a Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) donation of £75,000. Mr Rodrigues, 72, added: "We are making progress slowly but surely. If we get the National Heritage Lottery fund that will put the icing on the cake and mean we will be able to carry out the plans we have in the pipeline."
He said: "It will be a community hub for all groups to use. We have got three rooms upstairs which were the station master's living area. That is going to be considered to let as commercial use and we have had two people talk to us already.
"Downstairs we have got three rooms and a cafe area which can be used. We have had a suggestion to use it as a repair cafe." A Gedling Borough Council spokesperson said: "We can confirm we have received a planning application for Gedling youth centre, Shearing Hill, which includes construction of a new canopy and entrance lobby.
"A decision on the proposals is expected later this month. A bid for £75,000 of CIL funding has also been received for site and is currently out for consultation with residents and stakeholders.
"CIL funding are funds paid to the council by developers that has to be spent on priorities in consultation with the local community in areas where large development has taken place. Charities and community groups, such as Gedling Youth Centre, can apply for CIL funding to make improvements to community assets."
The centre has a rich history and is even thought to have given the legendary author JRR Tolkien the inspiration to write his Lord of the Rings trilogy. The station was formerly on the Great Northern line and closed in 1960.
Speaking about the heritage of the site, Mr Rodrigues said: "It was late September 1914 when Tolkien was with his aunt - he was staying with his aunt Jane Neave at Phoenix Farm, it was at the junction with Jessops Lane. On September 24, he wrote this poem called the Voyage of Earendel the Evening Star - that was the spark that ignited the whole of his later mythology, the Lord of The Rings etc."
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