A COFFEE chain has applied for planning permission to open a store in the shop occupied by the Darlington branch of Burger King.
The site, in the Cornmill Centre, has been home to the burger outlet for more than 15 years, and Costa Coffee looks set to move in.
A planning application has been submitted to Darlington Borough Council but Costa Coffee said there are no firm plans.
The official planning papers, which were jointly submitted by the coffee firm and Moorfield Group, the new owners of the Cornmill Centre, state: "Burger King has confirmed an agreement to surrender its lease."
But a spokeswoman for Burger King said yesterday: "At this point in time, there are no plans to close the restaurant."
A spokeswoman for Moorfield Group said: "We are in negotiations with Costa Coffee."
"We believe that kind of use for the Cornmill Centre would enhance the town centre.
"We haven't agreed anything as yet, and we are not sure at this point what Burger King's plans are."
A spokeswoman for Costa Coffee said: "Nothing is definite yet. We are in the very, very early stages."
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