Retail park plans for former textiles factory site
REDEVELOPMENT BID TO INCLUDE TWO DRIVE-THRU RESTAURANTS, SHOPS, SUPERMARKET, OFFICES AND HOMES
TWO drive-thru restaurants, a supermarket, homes and retail outlets could be on the way to Kirkbyin-ashfield after a new retail park plan was revealed.
The plans, at textiles company Romo’s former Patco site on Lowmoor Road, could see the nowvacant land transformed if approved by Ashfield District Council.
The land became vacant when Romo ceased operations at its Patco site last year, but now the company wants to give its land a new lease of life. Under its proposals, four lockups for retailers would be created. This could include takeaway outlets and food vendors.
There would also be space for two drive-thru food outlets, a discount supermarket and buildings for business premises.
It is not clear at this stage which companies would take on the retail and food space.
Developers are also proposing onsite residential properties, with a four-storey building of 44 one and two-bedroom apartments as well as 15 three-storey townhouses included in the plans.
A spokesperson for the developer said: “Whilst an end occupier for the food store is not yet confirmed, it is expected that this would be operated as a discount food store.
“The store and other uses would principally serve and attract trade to the Kirkby-in-ashfield urban area and the areas to the south of the town.
“Whilst some trade will inevitably be drawn from Kirkby-in-ashfield centre, this will principally be diverted from the Morrisons store; which is performing very strongly, and even after the level of expected trade diversion, the store will be trading well.
“The application site is well-connected, benefiting from good links to public transport, whilst the development proposed presents the opportunity to improve the connectivity from the town centre to this site for cyclists and pedestrians.”
The development has been welcomed by people in the area “in principle”, with some raising concerns over increased traffic problems.
Walter Copeland, 68, was walking past the site with his dog and welcomed parts of the plans.
“If it creates jobs and new business in Kirkby then it can only be good for the area,” he said.
“There are no fast food chains in the town, Sutton has the KFC and Mcdonald’s right next to each other plus the Iceland and Asda.
“But I’m unsure about the supermarket. We’ve got an Aldi and a Morrisons in Kirkby so there isn’t really much demand.
“My only concern is traffic. Lowmoor Road can get quite busy so all of the new cars could make it really congested.”
Becky Preater, 38, said: “The main issue is with the amount of cars. There’s going to be a lot more traffic on Lowmoor Road after it’s built with houses and shops. It’s already very busy with traffic going into the town and from the industrial estates, so that could cause a few problems.
“But it’s a good idea in principle, because it’s not too far from Kirkby so it’s a bit like a retail park.
“Those businesses are very likely to create probably more than 100 jobs, which is good for the town, and it’s probably not going to affect the town centre that much.”
Ashfield District Council’s planning website indicates that a decision on the development is due by May 4.