Supermarkets vie for new store in village
Sainsbury’s THE scheme is in partnership with dia- mond manufacturer DK Holdings, which currently owns the land, south of Station Approach, on which the supermarket would be built. In return, DK Holdings would gain a
new 28,000sq ft factory from which to op- erate.
There would be 161 parking spaces for customers. A mini-roundabout and new pedestrian crossing is proposed on the main A229 to alleviate fears of congestion. Sainsbury’s has also purchased the for-
mer Esso petrol filling station further south in the High Street and proposes to make improvements. Advantage Secures the future of DK Holdings, which has traded in the village for around 50 years, so would help safe- guard local jobs in addition to the 150 pro- vided by the supermarket.
Disadvantage Consumers may prefer the larger store offered by Tesco.
Statement
MAX Whitehand, regional development executive: “Over 550 people attended the exhibition and 381 comments forms were returned, with 87% of respondents sup- porting or tending to support the propos- als.
“Many people recognised the need for greater food shopping choice locally and welcomed the convenience of having a Sainsbury’s closer to home as they fre- quently undertake their main food shop- ping elsewhere.”
Station Approach (looking to the west) is at the centre of the supermarket battle. Sainsbury’s wants to build on the left, Tesco on the right
Lillicos Country Store
£1.00 £1.59 Medium £1.39 £39.99 £5.99
December Offers
£3.50* £3.00 £5.99
Lillico Country Store, Beddow Way, Aylesford, KENT ME20 7BT Tel: 01622 718062
You can e-mail the Downs Mail —
info@downsmail.co.uk South 19
SUPERMARKET giants Tesco and Sains- bury’s are used to going head-to-head on price and quality, but on this occasion they are slugging it out over a precious piece of land in Staplehurst. Two months ago, Downs Mail reported
on a public exhibition where Sainsbury’s outlined its proposal to build a 19,000sq ft supermarket on land south of the train sta- tion, bounded by Station Approach and Lodge Road. The company has since sub- mitted a planning application. Hot on its heels is bitter rival Tesco, which has presented a public exhibition for a 28,000sq ft supermarket on the oppo- site side of Station Approach, closer to the train station. The proposal is similar to a scheme it withdrew in 2005. The company says it was pleased with public response and will lodge a planning application be- fore the end of the year.
Tesco WORKING with Network Rail, the Tesco store would be built on an old goods yard directly south of the train station. The current train station car park would
be used by the supermarket for its cus- tomers, with a new car park built off George Street, north of the station, for rail- way customers. Phased traffic lightswould be introduced
to the junction of theA229 and Station Ap- proach, with a pedestrian crossing imme- diately to the south. A petrol station would be established
close to the junction of Station Road. Advantage The store would be much bigger than Sainsbury’s, offering clothes, electrical goods and a café. Disadvantage The site of the new sta- tion car park may concern conservation- ists, as the land is known to harbour Great Crested Newts and to be liable to flooding.
Statement
JONATHAN Simpson, corporate affairs manager: “Over 300 hun- dred people came to our exhibi- tion, many of whom gave us positive feedback on our plans for a new store and improved station facilities. “Local people have assured us
they want more jobs and invest- ment brought to the town, as well as the convenience a new store would bring. We hope district councillors recognise this when they come to consider the plans.”
SPECIAL OFFERS
LOW PRICES
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40