A £14 million supermarket development in Spalding has been put on hold after councillors raised serious concerns about traffic, road safety and the proposed access arrangements near the A16/A151 roundabout.
Commercial Development Projects Ltd wants to build South Holland Retail Park on land opposite McDonald’s, off the A151 roundabout. The scheme would include a new supermarket and Costa Coffee, but the identity of the supermarket has not yet been revealed.
South Holland District Council’s planning committee debated the proposal on Wednesday, September 23, before deciding to defer the application. The developer will now be asked to reconsider the way vehicles enter and leave the site, particularly the connection to the A151, which is a short distance from the A16 roundabout.
Why councillors are worried about the junction
The main concern is that drivers entering the site from the A151 would need to make a right turn shortly after leaving the roundabout. Councillors feared traffic waiting to turn could create congestion and increase the risk of collisions.
Under the proposal, vehicles leaving the development would have to turn left on to the A151 and travel towards the roundabout. Drivers could also enter from the A16 using a separate junction restricted to left turns.
Coun Paul Barnes warned that vehicles could back up towards the roundabout. He said: “That would be absolutely horrendous to try and get across the traffic there and you’ll be backing up onto the roundabout.”
Committee chairman James Avery also questioned whether motorists would follow the restrictions if they wanted to travel east. He said the A16/A151 roundabout was “the busiest part of Spalding” and warned: “I can see issues with the exit on that location, given its proximity to the roundabout. But I can also see that motorists would get exasperated and will turn right out of the site. There’s absolutely no doubt about it.”
Coun Andrew Woolf said the roundabout area was already a concern. He said: “I would consider it already dangerous, even with the McDonald’s.”
Public concerns and proposed benefits
The council received 23 letters from members of the public about the application. Objections focused on road safety, drainage and the scale of the proposed development.
Supporters pointed to the potential for new jobs, the need for a high-quality supermarket in Spalding and what they viewed as a good location for the scheme.
The development would provide 98 jobs and include 185 parking spaces, along with electric vehicle charging stations. A retail assessment concluded that the proposal would not have a “significant” effect on Spalding town centre.
However, councillors also want the applicant to clarify a statement concerning the development’s immediate impact on the adjacent bungalow.
What happens next
The proposal was first outlined by the developers in June last year. No final planning decision has been made while the applicant reviews the access arrangements and provides the further information requested by the committee.
The future of the supermarket, Costa Coffee and the wider South Holland Retail Park scheme will therefore depend on whether the developer can address the committee’s concerns about traffic movement, safety, drainage, development scale and the nearby property.
