Positive reaction to Morrisons supermarket plans
General views of Morrisons
Broughton Astley residents have welcomed the news that Morrisons is planning to build a supermarket there.
The 15,000sq ft store - about the same size as the new Waitrose supermarket in Harborough - is planned for land east of Broughton Way.
Designed as part of Jelson Homes 300-home development, the store would create 150 new jobs.
It will offer a full range of goods and services, including Morrisons’ ‘Fresh Market’ with butcher, fishmonger, and fresh food counters.
The plans were confirmed on Monday night.
Speaking after the announcement, Broughton Astley Parish Council chairman Clive Grafton-Reed said: “The joint proposal is consistent with the site allocations policy in the draft Broughton Astley Neighbourhood Plan which states that new housing development in Broughton Astley should be accompanied simultaneously with the provision of local infrastructure including recreational and leisure facilities, retail provision and employment opportunities.
“Furthermore, the site proposed for the development has been identified as one of the three prioritised sites for development in Broughton Astley, following an options appraisal and public consultation process.
“The results of our consultation so far, have demonstrated that a large supermarket is needed in Broughton Astley to stop unnecessary car journeys and create local employment. With Fosse Park and Leicester being popular choices for all shopping; 89.9 per cent of responders to the survey said they used a private vehicle in order to go shopping.
“We acknowledge that there is limited space for expansion within the existing village centre, therefore proposals for additional local retail, employment and business development which cannot be accommodated within the village centre will be supported elsewhere in Broughton Astley.
“However, the Parish Council firmly supports the retention of the village centre shopping and business area and through multi-agency working, a strategy will be developed to improve and enhance the existing village centre.
“The developers of the proposed site will be expected to provide the Parish Council with a detailed design proposal to enable full consideration of the transport, heritage and green space issues, public benefits and other material planning matters, prior to submission for planning permission.”
Resident Ken Larkins said: “I think of all the potential developers looking to build in Broughton Astley, Jelson Homes seem to have the best understanding of our needs.
“They took the time to meet the public with a consultation event at the village hall and were genuinely interested in residents’ views.
“There is no doubt that most residents get in their cars and drive to Lutterworth or Fosse Park for their supermarket shopping. Unfortunately, the existing Coop in the village centre is not big enough to be a genuine contender.
“So when Jelson included the building of a full sized supermarket in their proposals for their Broughton Way development, many residents were enthusiastic and supportive. As well as providing a shopping benefit, the supermarket will also provide employment too, which none of the other potential developers have offered.
“Whether Morrisons is the supermarket of choice is debatable. I was surprised they were interested in a location which is only seven miles away from their Lutterworth store. I would have thought Sainsburys might have been more interested, as the social mix of Broughton’s population is ideal for their customer base.
“However, the addition of a supermarket away from the village centre could bring problems for the existing shops. Obviously, the Coop will lose trade and the other shops will lose casual shoppers whose main reason for visiting the village was to go to the Coop.
“To summarise, my reaction to the news that Jelson are applying for permission to build 300 houses and a supermarket is positive. I think their development will add to the village in a good way and may just help us to fend off the less well thought out developers whose sole objective is to turn in a profit and care nothing about the wider issues our village faces.”
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Saturday 25 May 2013
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