Plans for new Morrisons supermarket in Banff to be assessed by councillors
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Councillors are set to assess plans for a new Morrisons supermarket in Banff next week which planners have recommended for refusal.
The retailer is proposing to build the store at the town's Canal Park on common good land.
As well as the supermarket the application also includes a café, petrol station and car parking.
In the report that will go before the Banff and Buchan area committee on Tuesday, Aberdeenshire Council's planning department has recommended that the proposal be refused with flooding a key concern.
It outlines: "The principle of a supermarket on the site may be acceptable in terms of the site’s Local Development Plan allocation and details of the main building’s design and finish may be considered appropriate to the location, whilst there would almost certainly be social and economic benefits to the development.
"However, there are issues relating to site access and especially to site flooding and drainage which have not been – and indeed may not be able to be – satisfactorily addressed.
"It thus remains a significant concern that the current access proposals for the site are unacceptable on that basis, and even more so that the potential for the site to flood cannot be satisfactorily mitigated for the foreseeable future.
"The conclusion therefore must be that the proposal as it stands is not in accordance with both Local Development Plan and NPF4 policies specific to access and to flooding/drainage, and as such that the recommendation must be to refuse full planning permission."
The report also provides the details of the supermarket plan.
It states: "Taking the proposed supermarket building first, this is a building with an overall footprint area of 3148 square metres, of which 1738 will form the internal retail floorspace area.
"The overall width of the building is 47.438m with a length of 68.05m.
"Maximum height is 6.3m – this represents the height of the walls which form a parapet and behind which is a shallow pitched roof to a maximum height of 5.548m. In other words, the highest point of the pitched roof will be below that of the parapet.
"The main frontage and public aspect of the store faces south towards the A98/New Road, and has an overall width of 47.438m.
"It features large areas of glazing at the western side of the frontage with three large window openings framed with basalt (dark) grey coloured fittings.
"The eastern side of the frontage also features large areas of glazing associated with the store entrance and foyer area with the same dark grey frames and fittings.
"On the eastern elevation of the store entrance and foyer area again is a prominent glazed feature reflecting the second most public aspect of the proposed store when viewed from Bridge Road to the east."
The report added: "Associated with the main supermarket building, the home shopping unit is located just to the west of this and at the north-western corner of the overall site, and also accessed from Old Market Place.
"The purpose of the building is to load delivery vans taking orders placed online out to customers.
"It will measure 11.9m wide by 17.4m long and have a maximum roof height of 4.395m.
"Situated at the southern-most point of the site and adjacent to the boundary with New Road (the A98) is the proposed petrol filling station.
"The kiosk serving this will be located parallel to the boundary with the neighbouring Coop supermarket’s boundary and car park, separated from it by a chainlink fence and a line of trees and shrubs.
"The building proposed has a rectangular footprint area measuring 21.27m long by 9.463m wide for a gross floorspace area of 191m squared. Of this area, 140m squared will be retail floorspace.
"Detached from the kiosk building but associated with it are other structures including a canopy over the petrol pumps, a secure storage area, and a car wash bay.
"The canopy over the four petrol pumps will be to a height of 4.9m with a finish colour of basalt grey to match details of the kiosk building.
"Immediately adjacent to the southern gable of the kiosk is the secure storage compound for storage of waste and for plant associated with the forecourt.
"Just to the north of the kiosk building a cage for gas bottles is indicated.
"To the west of the forecourt are bays for air and water, and a further one for a jet wash."
It added: "Vehicular and pedestrian access to the site is proposed at two points; onto Old Market Place and the New Road (A98).
"The former will be for the purpose of accessing the service yard area and home shopping unit only and will entail the demolition of the vacant community centre building.
"The latter will be for customers of the proposed supermarket and/or the petrol filling station.
"An additional pedestrian access point is located at the north-eastern corner of the site – an existing gateway through the boundary wall onto Old Market Place.
"Car parking for the store is located between the petrol filling station at the southern end of the site and the supermarket building to the north.
"In this area 166 spaces are proposed including 10 x disabled bays, 10 x parent and child bays, 2 x click and collect bays, and four bays with electric vehicle charging points.
"A further six parking bays (including one disabled bay) are located on the forecourt of the petrol filling station for an overall site total of 172."
Aberdeenshire Council received 183 representations of support for the application and 185 objections.
The reasons for supporting include it will support the local economy and businesses; will reduce travel (and thus carbon footprint) for shoppers who currently drive elsewhere to shop; will be a positive impact on the town’s setting; will draw in custom from a wider area; and be positive in terms of employment generation for the town.
The issues objectors have are the flood risk with the site and area prone to flooding; road congestion close to Banff Bridge; adverse impact on established local businesses; loss of Common Good and recreational land; and the adverse impact on neighbouring Princess Royal Park.
The Banff and Buchan area committee councillors will assess the proposal during their meeting on Tuesday morning.
