New service station proposed for site of bitter planning row
EARLIER EFFORTS TO DEVELOP THE LAND SPARKED A LONG-RUNNING LEGAL BATTLE
PLANS have been submitted for a 24-hour service station near Hinckley.
It would be sited off the A5, just to the north of the M69 junction one roundabout, with a petrol station, Starbucks drive-through and a convenience store.
The site is near an Esso garage, on the other side of the A5, and is on the border between Hinckley and Bosworth borough and Rugby borough. Plans have been filed with both authorities.
A new signalised junction on the A5 would provide access to the site, which would be called Stretton Point.
It would include 54 car parking spaces, 10 of these for staff, along with spaces for one coach and six HGVs. The petrol station would include five pump islands, covered by a canopy.
Controversial plans to develop the land, known as Stretton Croft, with a business park featuring offices, restaurants and a 100-room hotel were granted on appeal in 2013.
Rugby Borough Council approved the original bid in 2011 and years of legal wrangling and an unsuccessful public review followed. There was strong opposition from Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council and many residents.
A design statement filed with the current plans says: “The Secretary of State concluded that a definite need for additional office floor space, in the form of a business park, was demonstrated and that the proposal would not undermine the spatial strategy for Hinckley or the vitality of Hinckley town centre.
“He also considered that the proposal would contribute to the economic prosperity of the area. It was also concluded that the application proposal was not an Environmental Impact Assessment development.
“In 2017, approval of all reserved matters was granted for this scheme and this permission is extant, having been lawfully implemented through a material commencement of development – thus establishing the principle of development.”
The statement says that proposed access to the site and associated highways improvements have been discussed with Highways England and both Warwickshire and Leicestershire county highways departments.