Booths beat Asda in West Lancashire supermarkets battle

Mar 12 2010 by Michael Byrne, Ormskirk Advertiser

BOOTHS won the battle of the supermarkets in West Lancashire on Thursday night, but Secretary of State John Denham has the final say on whether the store gets built.

West Lancashire Council Planning Committee meeting members rejected proposals to create an Asda store on the former Hattersleys site off Burscough Road in Ormskirk.

The reasons were given that the store would affect the viability of Ormskirk Town Centre, and extra traffic generated would be detrimental to local residents.

But they gave their approval to plans for a Booth’s store to be built alongside four other retail units, offices, a vehicle showroom, restaurant and ambulance station of the former HMS Ringtail site off Pippin Street.

In both cases they went against the recommendations given by planning officers.

Mr Harrison, West Lancashire Council acting executive manager for planning, warned members that in approving the Booths scheme they seriously undermined the council’s chances of successfully defending an appeal by Asda against their decision.

After the meeting Nigel Clarke of Pendle Bracken Ltd, who made the Asda application, said they hadn’t decided whether they would appeal against the committee’s decision.

If the Asda scheme had been approved it would have created 110 new jobs.

Mr Clarke told the meeting the Asda store was needed to safeguard the future of the site, which also includes offices and a Focus store. If the site was fully occupied it would offer 375 jobs.

Mr Denham, Secretary of State for the Department of Communities and Local Government, will have to be informed of the committee’s action to approve the Booths scheme.

This is because the scheme goes against the council’s development plan.

If he decides to call it in he will decide whether it should go ahead.

Mr Harrison will draw up a series of conditions for the Booths site if the secretary of state decides he doesn’t need to examine the proposal.

If the Ringtail development does get built it will create 350 new jobs.

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