The future for Stroud's dilapidated tax offices is up in the air again after Ecotricity, who had plans to convert the building into domestic accommodation, signalled a second U-turn on the project.

As reported in Punchline-Gloucester.com in July 2023, energy utility Ecotricity, whose HQ is a few paces opposite at Lion House, had eyes on a plan to rescue Merrywalks House after it bought the address with the initial intention to use it as additional office space.

But in the aftermath of the Pandemic, the company said it had rethought the plan and wanted to turn the building, with both internal and external alterations, into 18 domestic units. Cheltenham-based Ridge Property and Construction Consultants accordingly submitted details for the project to Stroud District Council.

However, planners have now confirmed that the scheme has been withdrawn. Punchline has requested comment from Ecotricity on what it now plans for the site, which is close to Dransfield Properties' ongoing £30m investment in the town.

Back in 2017, Ecotricity revealed its Plan A as a renovation the three-storey block and give it a radical new look as office space, but the change of direction came after Ecotricity founder Dale Vince stated: "We bought Merrywalks House at a time when we could see ourselves needing more office space but that has changed."

With flexible working now being widespread at the company, he added: "We believe it would be best to create more homes for people in Stroud."

The original office scheme for the building came with a promise of 300 new jobs, although the first design was dismissed by local critics as both a "bicuit tin" and a "Lego" vision. Glen Howells Architects subsequently submitted a cleaner, modernist vision that was presented as 'New Axiom House'.

Recent updates to the now-dropped bid for change of use from Class E to C3 show that a Section 106 calculation had established a rate per dwelling for the project, with the sum intended to mitigate impact on two nearby Special Areas of Conservation. The final cost was set to top £30,000.

Shire Hall's Highways Department had also voiced concern about the intended parking arrangements, suggesting that a proposed turning area at the north end of the car park would leave residents facing a reversing challenge.

● In 2008, the Inland Revenue's operations in the town had managed to dodge a national closure program, with 68 staff at the site escaping redundancy or relocation, but the axe finally fell on the offices on April 1, 2014.