‘Gateway to Wales’ retail plan facing rejection
CONTROVERSIAL plans to build two retail units and a pub at a gateway to Wales are facing rejection over the potential impact of the development on Monmouth town centre.
More than 600 objections have been lodged over the proposed commercial development on a site near the Dixton Road junction with the A40, around one kilometre from the town centre.
A Marston’s pub and two retail units, planned to be occupied by two bulky goods retailers, are proposed on the site offering a gateway into Wales.
Developers Avenbury Ventures LLP say the plans will bring 55 jobs in total, including 35 full-time positions.
An application claims the development will bring “much-needed economic development”, clawing back shoppers who currently travel out of Monmouth to locations such as Hereford and Newport.
Parking for 87 cars would be provided, along with ‘Sheffield-style’ cycle stands and new landscaping.
But 631 objections have been lodged, though many of these relate to a previous proposal which included a McDonalds and drive-thru Costa Coffee.
Those objecting include the Campaign for the Protection of Rural Wales, Monmouth Comprehensive School, Haberdashers’ Monmouth Schools, MP David Davies, Monmouth Civic Society, Monmouth Chamber of Commerce, the town council and Natural Resources Wales.
It is feared the development will add to traffic problems on the A40 and the Dixton Road roundabout which David Davies has called “incredibly dangerous.”
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The Campaign for the Protection of Rural Wales say the proposals “do little to highlight the beauty of the area or the town” as visitors enter Wales from England.
It says the development is one of the first things people would see and that “surely Monmouth and Wales deserves something better than a pub and two retail units.”
Monmouth Chamber of Commerce is among those to express concern over the development’s impact on traders in the town centre.
Planning officers also say the proposals are ‘ inconsistent’ with retail strategy, which identifies town centres as the preferred location for such developments. They are recommending councillors reject the application at a planning committee meeting next Tuesday.
An independent assessor says Monmouth town centre remains “potentially vulnerable”, despite showing positive signs.
Planning chiefs say the retail units, but not the pub, will have an “unacceptable detrimental impact” on the viability of the town centre.
A report says potential economic benefits remain unclear without knowing the users of the retail units.