£13m retail park is given go-ahead
PLANS for a £13 million retail park on the former Barracks Mill site have been given the green light after a public inquiry.
Applicant Cedar Invest challenged Cheshire East Council planning committee’s decision to refuse the application last autumn.
This means the developer now has permission to build four large shops on site on Black Lane which could become home to big name national brands including Range, Dunelm and Sports Direct.
Planning inspector Matthew Birkinshaw, who oversaw the planning inquiry in July, said he allowed the appeal but would introduce conditions to protect the ‘vitality and viability of Macclesfield Town Centre’ by limiting the total amount of retail floorspace and restricting the type and amount of goods that could be sold from the site.
The scheme has divided opinion among both shoppers and business leaders in the town.
Ward councillor Steve Carter argued the develop- ment would bring jobs and get rid of a dangerous building which has been unused since fires in 2004 and 2013.
But objectors Macclesfield Town Council and Eskmuir Securities Limited, which owns the Grosvenor Shopping Centre, argued it will divert trade from the town centre. Macclesfield MP David Rutley also warned it could adversely harm the £20m town centre cinema scheme.
The scheme even divided Cheshire East Council with the Regeneration team fearing it could wreck its plans to make the ailing town centre a day and night destination, and planning officers claiming the proposal would bring new jobs and investment to a key gateway into Macclesfield.
Reacting to the decision, Councillor Ainsley Arnold, cabinet member for housing and planning, said: “The Barracks Mill site has been vacant and subject to vandalism and anti-social behaviour for too long.
“Whilst we welcome the fact that it will be brought back into use, we regret the decision made by the planning inspector that it will be for retail use.
“Our concerns with the Barracks Mill scheme have always been around the potential impact this scheme may have on Macclesfield town centre.
“However, it is good to note that the inspector has recognised this and imposed restrictions on the type and amount of goods that can be sold from the site.”