Approval anticipated for a £5.6 million mix-use development scheme by Armagh I earlier this week has now come to fruition… but one Councillor took pains to address the safeguarding of future plans to build a city bypass before making a decision.
At a meeting of ABC Council’s Planning & Regulatory Services committee on Wednesday (February 4), members discussed plans to develop a new EuroSpar and petrol filling station on lands in the Orangefield area.
Proposed by the applicant, Mark Shilliday, the scheme – which presents a multi-million pound investment and the creation of over 100 jobs – was recommended for approval at the meeting.
Planning Manager, Kyle Elder informed members that the scheme would see the demolition of an existing dwelling, convenience shop and industrial unit in order to provide a new neighbourhood shop with a new fuel forecourt, canopy and eight light industrial units, associated car parking and a proposed new access.
The scheme was brought before committee as it was classed as a major planning application with more than four objections from separate postal addresses.
Following an overview of the proposals by Mr Elder, Councillor Scott Armstrong said he had a few questions but began by asking of on-street parking: “I think it comes into the wider context of the issues raised by objectors in relation to the flow of traffic.
“I know this area very well and anyone that’s driving on that road will know that flow of traffic there is quite bad because of the way the houses are; there’s no parking spaces for them so they have to park basically on the road, which reduces that down to a single lane road.
“I noted in the report that there’s going to be a realignment of the footpaths and I wonder if Jim [the agent] could maybe explain what those realignments are going to look like, is that going to alleviate the pressures on the parking in front of those properties?”
The agent explained: “There was much discussion which took place with DfI Roads, especially in regards to the car parking. As I’m sure you well know DfI Roads have a compound opposite and just slightly up from our site. The realignment and works to the footpath is to create two pelican crossings.”
He explained that as part of the application they were required to conduct an assessment of how people actually walk in the area rather than impose on how they “think they should walk”, so minor alterations to the footpaths are to accommodate that.
He added that DfI were “very insistent” that they did not reduce the existing car parking capacity on the road itself and they have offered to put in a few additional spaces, more than was needed in the forecourt area, “simply to deal with any overflowing”.
Councillor Armstrong then asked: “In relation to a PACC meeting with local residents, just reading through the report there seems to be sort of a disconnect between residents and the proposed in front of us, in that the report said it was met with quite positive outlooks but then when we come to objections there’s a long list of them.
“I’m just wondering where are we falling in between this because I know, I think it was nine objections from seven properties, how are we going to alleviate the fears from residents within this area?
“Then my second point was around, one of the objectors raised, was the need for a petrol station within the area. I note from the catchment map on page 24 of the report there’s five petrol stations within a five minute drive of the proposed site…”
The agent explained that with regard to the objections they did have a “very good public meeting with a large number of people at the site”, and he added that a “large number of those people welcomed the facilities on site” with particular regard to the retail.
He agreed that objections raised were “valid”, but explained they were to deal with observations at the detailed planning stage, explaining that those who objected required more detailed information which they were then provided with to consider at their leisure.
In regards to the need for the filling station, the agent explained that they had determined the need for the shop based on the availability of a convenience store within a “400 yard radius” or “five minute walk” of the densely populated area.
The forecourt is considered as “ancillary” to the supermarket and its development can allow the shop to operate seven days a week, he said.
Councillor Peter Lavery enquired about the types of businesses expected to enter the units and if any had been secured, to which the agent explained none had been secured but it was expected that small businesses would be best suited to the units.
Then, an interesting and forward-looking question was proffered by Councillor Armstrong: “I know that Armagh has a bypass plan that has been on a shelf and probably will continue to sit on a shelf for the next number of years.
“I know that the proposed plans at the time was for it to run from the Portadown Road to come up the Hamiltonsbawn Road, through Orangefield / Ballynahone and out to the Newry Road. I’m wondering has that been taken into consideration by DfI?”
Echoing the thoughts of many in the city, he added: “I know it’s probably never going to happen, but if you don’t ask the question, you’ll never know!”
Kyle Elder said: “Within the area plan there is a potential new road identified in close proximity to the area site but it does not go through the site.”
Introducing Val Russell, from DfI Roads, she commented: “The Armagh West link or East link, it goes from the Portadown Road by the army barracks and through up past the MOT centre, through there and then up to the Newry Road.
“Now it’s identified on the area plan. I worked on it for a number of years prior to it being shelved. It may go ahead if finances became available but it’s protected and this is well beyond the site.”
Councillor Armstrong then proposed the development after stating: “I know the area very well. I grew up in and around it. I know no matter what you decide here today you’re either going to be the best in the world or the worst in the world.
“You’re either going to be the person delivering a multi-million pound project in the area or the person who opposed it and stopped that progression.
“Or you’re going to get people giving off that they are going to be living beside a petrol station or people giving off for other reasons.
“There is concerns around traffic but that’s whether the petrol station is going to be there or not, whether we decided to accept or not… those traffic concerns are still going to exist and there’s probably no easy way around it.
“I do see there is potential in the site, there’s potential there for jobs in the local area, there’s potential there for retail units, industrial units. There is a lot of potential, there are positives to be seen out of it and I know people will have concerns and they have considered and we have listened to them and looked at them.”
