Cheltenham Civic Society is calling for the owners of Cavendish House to work with Cheltenham Borough Council to create a vibrant hub for the town centre.

Cheltenham's iconic 14,000 sq ft, four storey department store on The Promenade opened in 1823. It closed its doors for the final time last week.

Now Cheltenham Civic Society (CCS) said the demise of Cavendish House could provide Cheltenham with an unmissable opportunity to create a town square - the focal point it believes the town has always lacked.

Andrew Booton, Cheltenham Civic Society chair, said: "The council should lead a public debate about what could be done. They should up their ambition and insist on an outcome that's driven as much by the public interest as by private profit."

CCS's Planning Forum has presented a vision for a new town square it is calling 'Cavendish Square', to link The Promenade with Regent Street.

It said each of the new square's four sides would be dominated by a landmark building:

• The Everyman Theatre, with Matcham's distinctive Edwardian façade, on the south-east side

• Facing it, on the far side of the square, the Regency terrace on The Promenade anchored by Waterstones

• The former County Court building on the north-east side, alongside a new four or five storey development of shops with offices above

• A new four-storey civic building on the south-west side, a home for Cheltenham Borough Council, which would allow it to dispose of the Municipal Offices as planned 

The CCS said all the neighbouring Grade II listed buildings would be retained and their settings greatly enhanced by such a development.

The theoretical scheme would also allow for some of the existing Regency frontage of Cavendish House on Regent Street to be retained and restored, with shops or cafés at ground level and apartments above.

In its newsletter, the CCS said: "The square itself would need to be designed to very high standards. High-quality surfacing, street furniture and public art would be essential. And it would need trees to provide shade in a warmer climate.

"Cavendish Square should host continental-style eating-out areas. It should be planned to be at the heart of life in our town - and would particularly come alive at Christmas, in Race Week and during all our other festivals.

"As an attraction in its own right, Cavendish Square will draw people to the centre of town and stimulate the economy in the immediate vicinity, including in the Prom and the High Street."

Andrew Booton concluded: "What we are really seeking is a big leap of imagination by the owners - Canada Life - and the borough council. Of course, the site will need to be commercially viable, but it also needs to be exciting and do justice to its central location.

"We hope our initial ideas will provide some inspiration for Canada Life to come forward with something even better. We would be delighted if they do so, and we would be pleased to work with both Canada Life and CBC to discuss all the possibilities."