PLANS for a new Costa coffee shop and drive-thru on the gateway to Mold town centre have been unveiled, which could potentially create 15 new jobs.
A vacant overgrown site on Chester Road has been earmarked for the development, a location the firm states is included within the Flintshire Council’s newly-adopted Local Development Plan, but one councillors on the authority’s planning committee have previously expressed concerns about regarding traffic.
The coffee chain giant has submitted its proposals to the council’s planning department and they will be decided on at a future date.
A planning statement submitted with the application, which the chain says would represent a £2m investment in Mold, says: “The application proposal is for a new Coffee Shop with Drive Thru to be occupied by leading national operator Costa Coffee.
“The application proposal is in a strategic location both within the town centre boundary and on the main highway network to serve passing vehicular traffic. Additionally created journeys will be limited.
“Our Highway consultant has reviewed the new Junction design and confirms the development can be adequately accommodated with minor mitigation by way of additional road markings.
“The coffee shop will be a single storey building of modern design. The scheme will be landscaped to assimilate the development into the local area and its distance from any residential neighbours mean no third party will be affected by noise, odour or light nuisance.”
It is claimed by the applicant that the development would have “minimal impact” on traffic in the area.
The planning statement includes a survey undertaken by consultants on their behalf which anticipates an increase in traffic of 1.5 per cent.
It states: “The nature of Costa’s business is that they rely on customers who are already making journeys to nearby commercial premises and/or are travellers already on the highway network.
“They do not expect a large proportion of customers to make sole purpose journeys to them, any traffic generation from any such customers would be the minority, the report estimates 88-90 per cent of traffic will already be on the network. Meaning that the increase in traffic numbers on the network generated by the development is only circa 1.5 per cent of additional traffic load.”
There would be more than 20 parking spaces created with the proposed development, in an area which is retail and commercial in nature.
Nearby units are occupied by Tesco, B&M, Farmfoods, McDonald’s, Aldi, Iceland and Home Bargains.
The last user of the land was Mold Builders Merchants, prior to this it is understood to have been a council works depot, and before that part of the railway goods yard.
The statement adds: “The new facility will create jobs 15 jobs (11 full-time equivalent) and will make a positive contribution to the local economy. The proposal will improve the aesthetic from the current derelict brownfield appearance at this important gateway site.
“We believe that there will be no demonstrable harm to matters of acknowledged importance in respect of transport, drainage, landscape, ecology, light and noise pollution.”
