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200507 | Camborne traders go into battle against out-of-town shopping centre plan

Camborne traders go into battle against out-of-town shopping centre plan

If it goes ahead, a Lidl, Home Bargains and a petrol station would be built

Camborne's high street (Image: Sally Adams)

Maintaining a thriving town centre and focus for investment is more important post coronavirus pandemic than building an out-of-town retail park, the team in charge of promoting Camborne has argued.

Developers are in the process of appealing against a decision by Cornwall Council planners to turn down plans to build an out-of-town retail park at Roseworthy Hill in Camborne.

If successful on appeal, the scheme by Quora, known as Polstrong, would see a Lidl supermarket, Home Bargains shop, petrol station and car parking spaces for 160 cars built on the edge of the town, where a Premier Inn hotel stands nearby.

The proposed retail park in Camborne opposed by shops in the town - developers Quora have appealed a decision by Cornwall Council to turn the plans down (Image: cornwall council planning portal / Quora)

The proposed retail park, plans for which dates back to 2018, has faced strong opposition from local residents and retailers in Camborne.

The planning application was rejected in August 2019 on the grounds that the out-of-town retail park would have a significant adverse impact on the vitality and viability of Camborne Town Centre.

Cornwall Council also argued that the applicants failed to provide sufficient information in order to allow a full assessment of the net level of job creation and the scheme would encroach on the countryside and have an adverse visual impact.

In their letter explaining their decision to reject the application, Cornwall Council said: “The percentage of vacant retail premises in Camborne town centre, although falling in 2017, remains well above the national average at 18.3% against 12.1%.

Business improvement district manager for Camborne Anna Pascoe (Image: Sally Adams)

"This seriously and adversely affects the attractiveness of the town both to shoppers and investors, convenience goods have experienced a fall with that trade going elsewhere and a fall in the turnover of comparison goods. The conclusion is that the overall health of Camborne Town Centre is fragile.

“The council considers that the effects upon the health and vitality of Camborne have been underplayed. Even with a reduction in retail floorspace from that originally proposed there will be a harmful impact on a fragile centre which the council judges to be substantial.”

 

Quora launched an appeal in February saying: “The appeal proposals will not result in significant adverse impacts on the vitality and viability of Camborne Town Centre.

"The proposals represent a significant increase in employment opportunities both at construction stage and operational stage. Therefore, we consider this is a material consideration which weighs in favour of the appeal proposals.”

The long established Tyacks Hotel (Image: Sally Adams)

BID (Business Improvement District) Camborne has now filed a five-page precis to the Planning Inspectorate - -which will consider the appeal - in opposition to the proposal arguing that the out-of-town retail park would severely impact the high street by drawing business away from the town centre and causing consequential job losses.

BID manager Anna Pascoe said: “We are passionately against this proposal because we are convinced it will wreak significant damage on the town at a time when local businesses are on their knees and are most in need of help.


“The developers have shown no interest in working with us or other stakeholders and we believe the evidence and calculations produced in support of their plans do not stand up to scrutiny.

“In our opinion, the land in question would be far better suited to innovative industries, rather than retail units that will be in direct competition with similar outlets already in the town.

Camborne high street has its problems but is also doing well because of its community (Image: Sally Adams)

"We also question the logic of encouraging car usage to an out-of-town site in the midst of an officially declared climate change emergency.

“Given the application’s lack of sustainable principles and the hugely adverse effect it will have on Camborne businesses, we believe that Cornwall Council’s planning committee decision should be upheld and that this appeal should be roundly and firmly turned down.”

 

 

via https://www.cornwalllive.com/news/cornwall-news/camborne-traders-go-batt...

A computer generated image of the planned development at Roseworthy Hill
Planned development at Roseworthy Hill
The area is near the Camborne west junction of the A30 at the top of the Roseworthy dip

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