PLANS to build a retail park that will provide more than 400 jobs has been given the green light by Worcester City Council.
The intention of the development on Nunnery Way was originally to accompany the new Worcester City football ground but the club will no longer be using the site.
The planning committee decided to give the stand alone retail park the go ahead on Thursday (May 21) despite previously stating it would be refused should the football club not be part of it.
The plans were approved with nine councillors voting for and two against the project that will consist of stores restaurants and car show room.
Robert Barnes spoke on behalf of the developers, and told councillors the project had been an officer lead plan and they had addressed any issues previously raised including the amount of green space on site which has now been raised to 40 per cent.
He said: “Employment needs must be met and they will be immediately if permission is granted.”
Andrew Guy, councillor for Whittington Parish Council, said the development would call pedestrians and cyclists safety into question and goes against previously made conditions on the application.
He said: “Given the well-documented concerns over safety, this cannot be considered a sustainable location.
“The applicant will tell you that jobs will be created, but I can tell you that people will die trying to cross the A4440.
“Until WCFC has successfully relocated into Worcester then logic demands that this site is not approved for anything else, in the meantime. If the Perdiswell plan fails – and it is by no means certain to succeed – then this Council would have reneged on its promise to the club to bring it home.”
He then quoted Alan Coleman, planning officer, from the last meeting where he said the approval of this application was totally reliant on it being used for the football grounds.
Coun Andy Roberts said: “It seems to me that this application leaves us with nothing we did want and everything we didn’t want, it was supposed to house the football ground and so it is difficult to see what we would get here.”
Coun Paul Denham said: “We’ve always known this council needs to provide more jobs but we’ve been fairly unsuccessful in that.
“This is ideal, it’s by the motorway too which employers like.”
