A DECISION on a scheme for a new Aldi supermarket on university land in Lampeter, which has attracted hundreds of supporters, has been put on hold for a month.
The plans by Aldi Stores Ltd for a foodstore at Trinity St Davids Playing Fields Pontfaen Road, along with the refurbishment of a Grade II-listed sports pavilion, the installation of three pre-fabricated wooden ‘food village’ exhibition pods, and a nature and biodiversity area with associated access, car parking and landscaping, were previously recommended for refusal last summer.
Last July, members of the council’s development management committee instead gave the scheme cautious backing, invoking a ‘cooling off’ period, meaning it would be decided at a later date.
The application site currently provides two grass rugby pitches which are used for rugby, cricket, football, hockey and other sporting activities by St David’s College, now the University of Wales Trinity Saint Davids, the site owners. Within the southern part of the site is a Grade II listed pavilion.
While positive benefits of the proposal were noted, it was recommended for refusal on the harm on the setting of the Grade-II-listed pavilion, no “quantitative or qualitative need for the proposed foodstore in Lampeter,” and having a “major detrimental impact” on other stores, including the existing Sainsburys store in the town and “a major adverse impact on both Aberaeron and Llandysul town centres, with losses of around 10 per cent of total convenience trade predicted,” New Quay’s Costcutters store also mentioned as being at risk.
There had been hundreds of voices of support, together with a 700-plus petition in support of the scheme.
They were backed by local member Cllr Ann Bowen Morgan, who said both the town council and the chamber of commerce had supported the plans, adding Lampeter “noted as a deprived area” would welcome affordable food on its doorstep.
A spanner in the works for the scheme’s progression last year was a Welsh Government ‘holding direction’ issued at the time, which meant members could consider the application, but could not grant permission.
Following that, the scheme was due to return to the February 12 meeting of the development management committee, again recommended for refusal.
At the start of the February meeting, members were told by Head of planning for Ceredigion Russell Hughes-Pickering the application had been withdrawn from that meeting as extra information had been submitted by the applicants after the production of a report on the scheme for committee members.
He said there was “a need to make sure we give officers time to consider the information,” adding the deferral was about “protecting members from making a decision that could be ‘called in’.”
Members agreed to defer the application, which is expected to return to the March meeting.
