A FORMER town centre nightclub is set to be turned into a six-storey block of flats.

Council planners have given the green light in principle to Tunley Properties' proposal to demolish the disused Lava Lounge in Fleet Street and build a tower with 25 flats above a ground floor commercial unit. The building has been empty and unused.

The scheme got the go ahead despite opposition from South Swindon Parish Council and the owner of the building next door.

Here's what Adver readers thought of the news when commenting on our Facebook page...

Leon S Kennedy: "Hold on, bottom of town is like a scene from a horror film and a ghost town. Who would want a flat down there?"

Jade-Lee Agnes Maclennan: "Goodbye pubs, all will become residential within the next 10 years. Can easily see that could be a possible agenda over the last however many years. So sad, people used to come from all over the country for our nightlife, it was great. Now no one comes to even shop."

Peter Tye: "How many houses/flats does this commuter town need? As that's all Swindon now is. A commuter town with no heritage, life or soul left to it."

Lucy Morrison: "Worst thing ever is to build flats here. We have our dancing bar next door and will get moaning residents complaining. Well it wont stop me singing and dancing my way out of my local's doors at 3am in the morning. Shame though, good old Lava – great memories. What is this town coming to ?

Rich Lee Innes: "All these hotels in town will be pointless soon as who wants to stay in a hotel with nothing around, just flats. Town centre is rubbish."

Ann Broomfield: "Have they considered parking? Unlikely all residents will be bike owners only."

Marc Schofield: "The council has wanted the bottom of town just to be residential area for years. Looks like this will happen. It’s not like there is much to do for a night out."

Wayne Andrew Hedges: "Lava Lounge has been shut for over two years, urban explorers keep breaking in, and Casbah still hasn't been redeveloped 18 months on..."

Darren Blake: "High rents for the shops in the town, forcing shop owners to leave, then flats pop up."

Samantha Jamie: "What about the nightclub next door? The sounds and disturbance the flats will get and the restrictions the club with have next to a residential area. This town its embarrassing."

James Pound: "Welcome to Swindon Commuter Town 2025. We have no real town centre and a shortage of employment but plenty of housing for sale at prices that residents won’t be able to afford."

Wayne Taylor: "There's plenty of empty commercial units in that street already, so what warrants building yet another one? I'd guess that the commercial unit is there to help secure the planning permission."