New Supermarket Development for Morpeth Backed by Council Planners

New Supermarket Development for Morpeth Backed by Council Planners

11 July 2011

Plans to bring a new supermarket to Morpeth on a site close to the town centre have been unanimously approved by Northumberland County Council.

Members of the North Area Planning Committee backed the application from developers Dransfield Properties Ltd at their meeting in Alnwick on Thursday July 7^th  – praising the company’s partnership approach in working with the town’s stakeholders.

Department store owner Richard Rutherford and Morpeth Chamber of Trade added their weight to the plans for the Low Stanners site stressing the need to keep retail activity close to the town centre.

The scheme’s approval gives the green light for work to start on transforming the former council depot at Low Stanners in Morpeth - bringing forward a new 50,000 sq ft foodstore as well as an attractive landscaping scheme and good links with the town centre.

A lower level long stay car park will be built as part of the development as well as a store level shorter stay town centre car park - encouraging shoppers to visit the rest of the town centre. It’s estimated the new development will create 290 jobs in the town.

At the same meeting planners also approved the relocation of Morpeth’s oldest veterinary practice - Robson and Prescott -  from their premises on the development site to a new purpose built practice at the former Salt Depot at Whorral Bank.

The new surgery will allow the practice, which employs around 50 people, to expand and create a separate area for equine and farm animals.

Outline plans for the supermarket were approved just over a year ago and since then Yorkshire based Dransfield Properties has been working with the Environment Agency as well as other stakeholder groups and consultees to deliver a high quality scheme for the town.

Retail Property Director at Dransfield Properties, Andrew Malley, said: “We are extremely pleased to have the unanimous support of the planning committee and look forward to bringing forward this development in Morpeth.

“This is a complicated site and our professional team has spent the last twelve months refining the development in consultation with the local community.

 “The town’s long term success relies on its ability to resist out of town supermarket developments and having a second foodstore in the town on our site at Low Stanners will build on that success. The next stage will be to announce the foodstore operator which we will be doing shortly.”

Work is expected to start on site later this year and the company has pledged to keep those residents living closest to the site fully informed – a Considerate Contractor Policy has already been put in place and meetings with be organised once the contractor is appointed.

For further information about Dransfield Properties visit www.dransfield.co.uk

For further information, contact:

Public Relations Department, Dransfield Properties Ltd
Tel: 01226 360644
Email: pr@dransfield.co.uk