Extract from Agenda and Draft Minutes Strategic Planning Committee Wednesday, 9th February, 2011 9.30 am

Mr Jeremy Content
Planning and Regeneration (West) Cornwall Council
St Clare
Penzance
Cornwall
TR18 3QW

By post & e-mail

Dear Jeremy

Proposed Asda Store at Hayle RFC, Memorial Park, Hayle
(Application Ref. PA10l06932)

I write with reference to your e-mail of 24”‘ May in which you notified me of your intention to report the Asda, Morrison and ING planning applications to your June Strategic Planning Committee. Having read your committee reports l see that you are recommending that each application be reported back to the Committee for determination on September. The purpose of this letter is to register my c|ient’s strong objection to any such further deferral of these three applications.

 

The need for a new foodstore in Hayle is a longstanding one and at the previous committee meeting on 9"‘ February you will recall that members expressed considerable dissatisfaction at the continued delay in bringing any development forward in the town. Regrettably at that meeting it was judged by members that neither the lNG or Morrison/Actoris applications were in a position to be determined, with members highlighting a number of concerns/issues on each one that they wanted addressed. As a result members deferred making a decision on all three applications, resolving that each application be deferred for no more than five months, ie a committee date no later than July. This delay was almost entirely due to the need for lNG and Morrison/Actoris to address outstanding points of concern with their applications; Asda’s application was alone in having no fundamental issues outstanding, only a holding objection from the Highway Agency who have confirmed that they believe their concerns are capable of being resolved.

 

The committee minutes for the 9”“ February are clear in recording that my client’s application was only deferred in order to prevent it being determined ahead of ING and Morrisons. Given that our application had been with you for nearly 4 months, well in excess of your 13 week timetable for such applications, and there were no major issues outstanding with it, the prospect of a 21 week delay in determining it was not something we welcomed, although we understood your reasoning. However the suggestion that there should now be a further delay of another 11 weeks is unacceptable.



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We see no reason why Asda should have to face yet further delays in your Council determining their application solely because ING and Morrison are unable to address the various points of concern that members highlighted to them. In relation to ING in particular, we expressed doubts very early on over whether a large foodstore could be provided on South Quay without causing unacceptable impact in terms of heritage and highway issues. The validity of those concerns must now be self evident. ING first submitted an application for a foodstore on the South Quay site in December 2009; that application had to be withdrawn and a new application submitted a year later in December 2010; given the objections received from the statutory heritage bodies it now appears that they are now effectively having to do the same thing again, with the changes now being mooted to their existing application effectively constituting yet another new application. Given ING have already had 1% years to demonstrate the acceptability of a foodstore on South Quay but have been unable to do so, we do not believe that our own application should be delayed any further in order that ING be allowed yet more time to try and address their myriad problems. lt seems very unlikely that giving them an additional 11 weeks will allow them to come up with a scheme incorporating a superstore on South Quay that will not have a serious adverse impact on the World Heritage Site.

 

My client is also concerned that there has been no consultation or prior warning in respect of: a) your intention to defer determination of the applications to September; and b) that you wish us to take part in round table discussions in relation to retail policy issues. In respect of the latter point, we are not aware that there are any points that need to be addressed, as evidenced by the minutes of the 9”“ February committee where our application was deferred solely because the other two applications had outstanding issues.

>In conclusion, my client‘s position is that all three applications should be reported for determination to your July strategic planning committee, as was clearly the wish of your members. in respect of our own application we are confident that the concerns of the Highway Agency will be addressed and their holding Direction lifted by July. However even if there is a delay in achieving that, the Agency is on record as saying their concerns are capable of being addressed, which means that your committee could simply resolve to grant Asda permission subject to the approval of the Highway Agency.

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I would ask that you bring the contents of this letter, and Asola’s position, to the attention of members at the June committee.

 

Yours sincerely

 

CHRIS TOOKEY

Associate Director

E-mail: tookeyc@rpsgr0up.com

cc R Huteson — Asda Stores
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