Maidstone councillors have refused to grant planning permission for an out of town shopping centre located in Newnham Court. The plans, submitted by Land Securities, would have seen the area receive an £85 million investment, with the proposed centre including Waitrose and Debenhams as its tenants.
In addition, the centre would have provided scope for the existing Notcutts Garden Centre to expand as well as allowing new businesses to enter the local market by leasing one of the 17 retail units or restaurants available on site.
Head of retail development at Land Securities, Lester Hampson, voiced his disappointment at the decision of the local authority.
He said; “This is a lost opportunity for Maidstone.
“Together with the Maidstone Medical Campus on adjoining land, our two schemes would have created around 4,000 new jobs for the county town but councillors have turned their backs on that. That is a great shame.”
Councillors rejected the plans by eight votes to three, claiming that they were concerned about the impact the shopping centre could have on the local town centre and businesses operating in that area.
They also questioned whether the local road network would be able to support the projected increase in traffic volume, and finally claimed that the scheme could have an adverse effect upon the Area of Outstanding National Beauty which lies adjacent to the proposed site.
Councillor Tony Harwood was the first to reject the scheme, calling it “gruesome” and “over-bearing.”
He continued; “It would totally change the feel of north Maidstone.”
Yet one of the strongest arguments against the scheme came from planning officers, who claimed that Land Securities had not followed the government’s “sequential test” protocol by considering constructing the shopping centre on a site within the town centre. As the local authority is currently seeking new retail developments to regenerate the parts of the town centre in the vicinity of Maidstone East Station, this meant the plans also went against the development targets set by the council.
Land Securities says it will now take time to consider its options before making any final decisions on the scheme.
