Rutland County Council set Reject Aldi Store

I was shocked to find out that from another local blogger, Martin Brookes, that Rutland County Council Planning Officer, is recommending refusal of a new Aldi store in Oakham, especially since over the years the local residents of Oakham have been wanting a rival to Tesco's and the CoOp.

This is an ideal opportunity to provide Oakham a low cost supermarket with good access by car and by foot the new housing that has been forced on the people of Oakham and it is going to be wasted if the Council vote against the plan next week. It seems well supported by local residents and it would be a good opportunity to provide much need unskilled work into the town as well as support the local economy and stop people travelling miles to another Aldi Store.

The site chosen for the new store if off the Oakham Bypass near the site of the new petrol station and the planned hotel. This rather destroys the idea that planning permission has been refused recommendation by the Rutland County Council Planning Officer on grounds that the site was designated as employment land when exceptions already seem to have been made. What is more laughable is that apparently the bribe wasn't forth coming from Aldi. as part of the refusal states:

"The proposal would have an impact upon linked trips to Oakham Town Centre, and as such would be required to make contributions towards a County Council led planned programme of investment in the town centre to mitigate the agreed impact of the development on the town centre."

In addition to this many of the people that I see go to the Tescos or the CoOp drive there, do their shopping and then drive home. Most never ever think of going into Oakham. The same thing will happen if the purposed Sainsburys store is developed on the wasteland that was once Rutland College.

Interestingly since the land that the supermarket proposal is planned to built on was allocated employment land a lot has changed. The prison at Ashwell has closed and brought by the council and allocated to employment. This site has to be of equal size if not bigger than the planned supermarket and it would be easy for the Council to offset one against the other. This would negate the effect of reallocating the land.

I think a lot of people are going to  be upset if this plan doesn't get planning approvals when it goes before Rutland County Council on Tuesday evening next week. People want this store in Okaham and they want the benefit of cheaper good quality food at a price they can afford, rather than being ripped off by the major supermarkets. Personally I don't think there store look too bad and given that the land is just a load of mud it got to be a better use than it has now and it provides jobs for the town.

Currently people are losing patience with the Conservative led Rutland County Council who never seem to listen to the views of the people they represent. They just seem to feel they can do what they like and they will still get elected come the local elections in 2015. From what I read and hear locally they are doing this at their peril as nobody seems like them and feel they are letting the people of Rutland down. Personally I think they are right to think that way.