Thursday, 14 July 2011

Planning application submitted for Dorridge Sainsbury's

A PLANNING application has been submitted for a Sainsbury’s plan for Dorridge, moving the firm closer to a decision on the controversial Forest Court scheme.

Dorridge_view_1_-_from_car_park_of_Arden_Buildings - Copy



Click the headline or link below to read the rest of this story.

The application was put in this week to Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council, which will have the final say on the plans.

It is expected the plans will go to the council's planning committee, which meets in public, in the autumn.

It proposes an 1,812sqm store, 26 per cent smaller than a 2,460sqm plan thrown out by the council last year. The existing shopping centre would be demolished.

Yet the overall size, as previously reported by The Silhillian, will be 14 per cent smaller, from 5,140sqm to 4,414sqm.

Six other shops units will be provided, four along Station Road, and two at the store front by the present steps of the shopping centre. A restaurant will be provided on the first floor.

Customer access would be via Avenue Road to a car park slightly higher than Forest Road.

This would provide 179 spaces compared to 213 under the store in the previous plan and 91 now.

One analysis showed the car park would be 95 per cent full at peak times, Saturdays, and says and says noise from cars will be ‘negligible’ and of ‘minor significance’.

Yet another analysis acknowledges 181 spaces may be needed on Saturday at 11am but said these would be available elsewhere in Dorridge.

It proposes parking restrictions on the eastern side of Forest Road, restricting parking to an hour from 6am to 8pm.

Between 20 and 35 staff will use the car park at one time, it says. The firm estimates the development will create 200 jobs.

The car park would be shut with a barrier when the store is closed to deter anti-social behaviour. Street parking will be enough for use of other businesses, it adds.

The application says the council recently began enforcing the two hour limit at Forest Court in May and this had moved commuter parking into the car park behind the Total garage.

Yet it said there were still spaces at this car park, which charges £3 a day to meet demand.

It comes after The Silhillian this week revealed the council gave out no parking tickets at Forest Court in the 12 months from April 2010.

It says the current two hour limit will remain for all visitors and attendants will monitor cars with a handheld computer with £70 fines for those who overstay.

Patients at the doctors' surgery who require a longer stay will be exempt.

Total village spaces would rise from 319 to 464, it adds.

It adds: “Traffic associated with the development can be accommodated on the network and that the proposed car parking provision is sufficient to cater for the demands of the site and indeed Dorridge village.”

It estimates some 224 vehicles will enter the site and 232 leave between 4.45pm and 5.45pm on Fridays, one of its busiest times, compared to 358 and 370 in the previous plan.

And it says traffic has fallen over the last five years. Commentators have put a fall in UK traffic down to the recession and rising petrol prices.

The store would open from 8am to 10pm with deliveries from 5am to 10pm with lorries leaving by 11pm. Access would be via Station Road.

The central reservation on Station Road opposite Poplar Road will be retained after proposals to remove it were dropped.

This concerned some who feared cars will not be able to wait in the middle of the road, backing up traffic on Poplar Road.

The application says: “The driving rationale for the proposals is the need for a foodstore
in Dorridge able to retain trade locally.

“It is evident that a new store will significantly reduce the distance customers are currently travelling to undertake their food shopping.”

It adds: “The comprehensive scheme will assist in the creation of a heart for Dorridge,
improving the healthcare offer in the area, strengthening the vitality and viability of the village centre and will build on the unique character of the area.”

The last plan was refused over lack of parking, extra traffic and the store size.

To view the application click here and enter 2011 and 1107 in the two boxes.

Click here for previous Sainsbury's stories from The Silhillian.

NOTE: A couple of errors about the number of staff parking and the central reservation have been amended at 3.40pm.

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