The proposed Starbucks Drive-thru near Woodlands junction is now to be a ‘Leon’ drive-thru but the owners need new permissions for the work they are proposing.
Councillor John Ennis, who has opposed the development of this site for a drive-thru over many years and on various different applications, is taking up issues raised by residents during the construction.
John told Community News: “I have encouraged council enforcement against the contractors where the construction work takes place outside licensed hours, or in other ways infringes the terms of the planning permission. The early and late working is a nuisance to residents who are having their lives disrupted enough by this development.
·”The change from Starbucks to Leon is unfortunately not something which falls within the planning system. The council has no powers here to refuse a development simply because of a change of the operating company.
“However, the new development has to comply with the planning permission granted by the planning inspector and what is being built does not. I called on the council to require the developers to submit a fresh planning application and the council has done this. The unauthorised element of the current work that is being done is therefore at the risk of the developers. If they do not get planning permission then I will be asking for any building outside of current permissions to be removed.”
Community News 