Sainsbury's lose again in Melksham expansion attempt

8.13.00pm BST (GMT +0100) Wed 14th Jul 2010

An application by Sainsbury's to expand their Melksham store went to the planning committee on July 14th and was refused.

An almost identical scheme for a 1,937 sq m extension with a bigger car park and a relocated petrol station was refused on 10th March.

An appeal against that refusal is pending with a public inquiry date set for early September.

A number of minor amendments were made for the latest scheme, together with a couple of more significant alterations. These are the introduction of an in-store café and toilets and mezzanine level, and the inclusion of a kiosk at the petrol filling station.

As with the previous application council planning officers recommended permission.

The town council repeated their objections, as did a number of local residents.

Their concerns were mainly to do with the possibility of flooding, the impact on the ecology of the River Avon and surrounding areas, and the quality of the design.