May 11, 2021 11.31 am This story is over 34 months old

IKEA or ice rink? Your Debenhams replacement wish list

From the wacky to the wonderful
Debenhams said goodbye to Lincoln in 2021. | Photo: The Lincolnite
By Local Democracy Reporter

Debenhams closed in Lincoln for the final time over the weekend, and residents have been coming up with suggestions as to what will replace it.

The three-floor unit at St Marks Shopping Centre off Lincoln High Street is now vacant, after Debenhams closed its doors on Saturday, May 8.

Staff bid an emotional farewell to the store with a collective round of applause on the final day, and people are now wondering what the plans are to replace it.

Shutters are down and doors are locked, that’s it for Debenhams in Lincoln. | Photo: The Lincolnite

The unit is incredibly large, and The Lincolnite‘s readers have been letting their imaginations run wild as to what business could go in there next.

Popular suggestions included IKEA, a leisure centre, an ice rink or a Disney store, but many believed that some retailers would not be able to cope in a building that size.

It wasn’t without its tongue-in-cheek suggestions, though, such as a Woolworths, public toilets, or even a shopping experience museum.

Steven Bond’s idea was unorthodox but brilliant, suggesting we should have a “post apocalyptic paintball arena”.

Without question, the most controversial call was for the building to be made into student accommodation, given the ever-rising student presence in Lincoln.

“What we don’t need is more drinking or student housing” said Vic Metcalf, while Chris Harriss jokingly said that students will “get their own private dance hall”.

The opportunities seem endless for the St Marks unit, with Dan Donoghue even saying Lincoln should start its own ice hockey team and use the Debenhams plot as a stadium.

One reader proposed turning it into a Spearmint Rhino, and though it may not be at St Marks, at least they will have Desire Gentlemen’s Club to look forward to when that opens on Park Street in June.

The Lincolnite has asked St Marks Shopping Centre if there are any plans for the former Debenhams site as of yet, but has not received a reply at the time of publication.