News
Morrisons hinders Tesco’s station scheme
APROPOSAL for a Morrisons supermarket in Springfield Park could scupper a plan for a store, likely to be a Tesco, at Maidstone East.
The decision by Maidstone Council’s planning committee to support the principle of a 5,503sqm Morrisons supermarket, three retail units, a doctors’ surgery and 315 parking spaces on the site, off Royal Engineers Road, may also increase pressure to build housing in open countryside as the land is part of an allocation for 950 homes in the draft local plan. With the council under pressure
to meet a 19,600 homes target be- tween 2011-2031, the housing shortfall caused by the loss of a large brownfield town centre site would have to be met elsewhere. But councillors went against the
advice of officers, who urged re- fusal because it could jeopardise the scheme to create a supermarket in Sandling Road, on the site of the former Royal Mail sorting office north of the railway station. Tesco also raised an objection, suggesting it has an interest in the Maidstone East proposal. However, the decision to permit
the scheme will only be ratified when it returns to committee for conditions to be drawn up and ac- cepted. The draft local plan ear- marks Maidstone East, King Street, Len House and The Mall as “se- quentially preferable” sites for su- permarkets. But itwas mentioned at the plan-
ning meeting that a scheme to re- generate the Maidstone East area has been promised for 15 years without progress. Solum Regener- ation said it was about to lodge a planning application, in conjunc- tion with Network Rail and Kier, for a supermarket, retail units and railway station improvements. David Maddox, of agent Maddox and Associates, which represented Solum, said: “If Springfield is allowed to go ahead it could put into doubt the Maid- stone East proposal.
Jonathan Baldock, a consultant at
DTZHoldings,whichwas commis- sioned by Maidstone Council to do a study on retail demand in the town centre, said: “We forecast enough money to support one new supermarket within the first half of the local plan period and maybe a few smaller stores. “There is only retail demand for
one store, so it is either this one [Springfield] or Maidstone East. It is a simple choice: it is either or.” The committee voted mainly on
party lines, with six Conservative councillors opposing the Spring- field development and the LibDem and Independent councillors, a total of six, voting to defer for conditions, but with the principle in favour. However, Cllr RichardAsh broke
rank with the rest of the Tories and supported the latter motion. He said: “Maidstone East has been available for 15 years but nothing has happened. They say they are ready to deliver it but why now? I think it is because Springfield has galvanised them. Otherwise Maid- stone East would have stayed empty for years.” Cllr Stephen Paine, a Conserva- tive member of the committee and
“Springfield is a key brownfield housing site in our draft local plan and by voting for this to be retail the Lib Dems are putting extra pressure on greenfield sites for housing. Maidstone East is a constrained site and not suitable for the amount of housingwe could get at Springfield.”
Late bid to stop
development TESCO made a late submission to quash speculation that the Royal Mail sorting office is unavailable. The supermarket chain pleaded
with the planning committee to turn down the Morrisons proposal at Springfield Park for fear of dam- aging the viability of its scheme at Maidstone East. It said: “It would lead to a significant adverse im- pact on the vitality and viability of the town centre.” Mary Davidson, of Solum Re-
generation, which is spearheading the Springfield scheme, said: “There is an offer from Morrisons that would offer 280 jobs and £20m in investment.”
Powerhub refusal ‘could be reversed’
A DECISION to allow the Mor- risons scheme in Springfield Park could encourage aGovernment in- spector to give planning consent to the supermarket proposed at the Powerhub business centre in St Peter’s Street, Maidstone. In January, Maidstone Council refused Baltic Wharf’s application to convert the building into a mix of business, retail and leisure, in- cluding a big-name foodstore at ground level, with offices for pro-
6 Maidstone East May 2014 Cllr Stephen Paine
fessional and financial serv- ices above, a restaurant and car parking for almost 400 ve- hicles. The main ground for re- fusal was that it failed the Government’s
“sequentially preferable” test that
prioritises town centre sites such as Maidstone East for large retail schemes. Officers felt the Spring- field Park development also failed this test. The Powerhub proposal is currently being examined by the planning inspectorate. Cllr Stephen Paine, cabinet member for planning, said: “We are at an appeal with the Power- hub, which was described as out of town, and I worry about the precedent Springfield would set.”
“We are now ready to deliver a supermarket at Maidstone East, but an approval would weaken retail interest.”
cabinet member for planning, said: “We are jeopardising a once-in-a- lifetime chance to regenerate part of the town centre at Maidstone East.
An artist’s impression of the store
planned at Springfield
downsmail.co.uk ‘No reason to
prevent plan’ SPRINGFIELD Park has been re- dundant since KCC moved out of its office block there in 2001. In 2007, planning consentwas granted for 192 flats, a retail unit and com- munity hall, but this development has not taken place. Cllr Tony Harwood, who is a
local ward councillor and member of the planning committee, said: “This was previously an employ- ment site and there is no policy ob- stacle stopping this being developed as a supermarket. “Maidstone East is not allocated
in existing policy and is throwing up a huge number of objections, with Lower Boxley Road already at gridlock in terms of traffic. “How many more years must
north Maidstone be denied a su- permarket while it waits for some- thing to happen at the East station? South Maidstone has Tesco, Lidl and Morrisons, east Maidstone has Aldi and Tesco, west Maidstone has Lidl and Waitrose, central Maidstone has Sainsbury’s, but north Maidstone has nothing. “We are only talking about a medium-sized supermarket at Springfield, while discussions around the East station have been all about a much bigger store in an ambitious mixed-use develop- ment.”
Station upgrade
SOUTHEASTERN says its plan has been submitted to upgrade Maid- stone East Station and its forecourt. A spokesman said: “This is on a
list of proposed projects submitted for consideration in the national station improvement programme. “This would be carried out in partnership with Network Rail, but is all subject to approval.” It is hoped the project would be included in the programme of work for the next five years.
Tree ‘a safety risk’
APROTECTED beech tree is a risk to the railway line near Maidstone East, according to a church that has applied to remove it. St Francis Parish Centre says the
roots of the tree in the car park of theWeek Street building are affect- ing the railway tunnel below. Maid- stone Council will decide.
Eight trapped in li
FIREFIGHTERS were called to the Travelodge in St Peter’s Street, Maidstone, after eight people got stuck in the lift. None of the group, who were all
in their late teens and early 20s,was hurt in the Saturday night incident. The fire crew arrived at 9.50pm and took just over 30 minutes to open the door.
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