A LOCAL historian is calling for the demolition of the building which houses Kidderminster's main post office, branding it "grotesque".

Margaret Bradley is determined to set a campaign bandwagon rolling to have Crown House, in the Bullring, knocked down.

The 60-year-old member of Kidderminster Archaeologi-cal and History Society has slammed the architectural style of the building - erected in the 1970s - calling it "ugly" and "dirty".

She is appealing to other people who share her view to contact her so she can exert pressure to have it removed from the town's skyline.

The company which owns the building, however, is pumping millions of pounds into refurbishing the property, which is due to get a clean-up in the New Year.

Mrs Bradley said: "The building is largely empty. It is so ugly and it's so different from anything else in Kidderminster."

Crown House, said the part-time librarian with Worcester Diocesan Library in Worcester, was "surrounded by other, more historic buildings, like Baxter Church".

She added: "It may have looked interesting when it was first built but it's weathered very badly and it just looks awful now."

Tony Mason, facilities manager with London-based property firm Trillium, which bought Crown House from the Crown Estate in 1997, agreed that the outside of the building was "weather-worn".

He added, however, that the exterior was to be cleaned up before the end of March, as part of an upgrading programme of between £3million and £5million for Crown House within the next five years.

As well as the post office, the eight-storey building's mixture of public and private sector tenants also include the DSS, the Valuation Agency, computer companies and a security firm.

Mr Mason said: "We have a 20-year plan for the building. In that time, we're going to spend a considerable amount of money."

When deals with new tenants due to move in within the next few months are completed, around seven-eighths of the premises will be occupied.

With other Kidderminster town centre regeneration, such as Crossley Park, taking place, said Mr Mason, "we're going to be in a hive of activity".

Mrs Bradley, of Comberton Avenue, Kidderminster, said: "One of the things that's wrong is the height of Crown Buildings. It's grotesque. It's higher than the Baxter Church."

She can be contacted on 01562 751043.