Food takeaway is new favourite for bookies

An application to change a former bookies into a hot food takeaway in Blantyre has been approved.

At South Lanarkshire Council’s planning committee, councillors approved an application to renovate the bookmakers on 253 Glasgow Road which has been empty since July last year into a takeaway.

The applicant currently operates a takeaway at 249 Glasgow Road and plans to relocate to the larger premises at the application site.

The proposed change of use of the site will include a customer area, kitchen, staff area, toilet and a storage area.

The proposal also includes the installation of a new extraction system in the form of a traditional flue, located to the rear of the property.

A statutory neighbour notification was undertaken and two letters of objection were received, one of which included a petition signed by 116 people.

The grounds of objection to the site included the volume of hot food takeaways in the areas, road and parking issues, odours from the takeaway, noise concerns and litter.

Councillor Jackie Burns (Larkhall) voiced his concerns: “With regards to the petition with 116 signatures, their concern, apart from the odour, is parking – there is genuinely an issue with parking on Glasgow Road.

“I think the signatories are commenting on the fact that there is more likely to be a higher generation of parking next to a hot food takeaway as opposed to a bookies shop.

“Are we still comfortable without parking on Glasgow Road that this is efficient in the way that it is going to develop?”

Planning officials said, however, that there is on-street parking on Glasgow Road and the surrounding streets.

In addition there is also off-street parking available at an established car park at

Stonefield Road.

The takeaway is also re-locating from a site, already on Glasgow Road, therefore there shouldn’t be a huge issue.

The council’s roads department is also happy that there is adequate parking to facilitate this.

The proposal was endorsed by planning officers, who also recommended it for approval as it will bring the site back into use as opposed to lying derelict. It is considered to be an appropriate use in the town centre location.

Councillors were happy with the details of the proposal and moved to approve the planning permission.