The last piece of Commission for New Town heritage could be razed to the ground in a bid to give the site a new lease of life.
Gifford House, the old CNT office building, in London Road, Bowers Gifford, could be demolished after owners English Partnerships applied for permission.
If granted, the impressive building could be replaced with a block of offices.
Gifford House was used by the CNT as its main office block from 1949. It was left empty in 1995 when the commission's land was distributed out.
The site, which measures 2,740 square feet, has been marketed for about four years by English Partner-ships for business, hotel, conference and leisure use.
However, that marketing programme has proved unsuccessful and the company is now broadening its horizons in the hope of finally finding a buyer for the site.
A lack of interest in the site forced the partnership to go back to the drawing board, resulting in the latest application to Basildon Council.
An English Partnerships spokeswoman said: "English Partnerships and Basildon Council have jointly agreed a design brief for the future redevelopment of the land at Gifford House that allows a mixed use scheme to include offices, conference and leisure facilities.
"As an interim measure, English Partnerships has submitted a planning application to remove a range of redundant temporary structures and confirm limited office development up to a maximum of 2,740 square feet."
The request is to demolish the building and hardstandings and replace them with buildings for office use.
If permission is granted for the work, the site will be placed back on the market.
A Basildon Council spokesman said: "English Partnerships has applied to demolish the building and replace it with offices.
"However, the council understands this is unlikely to be the final design of what gets built there."
Bleak future - Gifford House, which will be demolished if new plans are passed
Picture: NICK ANSELL
Converted for the new archive on 19 November 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.
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