St Austell & Parishes Town Framework
Retail Strategy: Options
Consultation Document
November 2014
Contents
1.
Introduction...........................................................................1
1.1.
1.2.
Background ................................................................................. 2
St Austell Framework Plan Options Consultation Results May 2014 ..... 2
2.
Retail site options ..................................................................3
3.
Retail Strategy options ..........................................................5
4.
3.1.
Potential Retail Strategy 1: Town Centre/edge of centre only............. 5
3.2.
Potential Retail Strategy 2: Support Town Centre plus identify out of
centre / out of Town retail ....................................................................... 6
Town Centre and Edge of Centre Site Options ........................7
4.1.
4.2.
4.3.
5.
Out of Centre & Out of Town Site Options ............................11
5.1.
5.2.
6.
Old Vicarage Place ........................................................................ 8
Sedgemoor.................................................................................. 9
Co-op, Car park and adjacent area ............................................... 10
Trewhiddle Area: East (4A/4B) and West (5) ................................. 12
Coyte Farm ............................................................................... 15
Questions .............................................................................17
St Austell Retail Strategy – Options consultation document
1.
Introduction
This retail consultation paper builds on the Town Framework options consultation
that took place during April and May 2014. As a result of the feedback to that
consultation a view has been reached, endorsed by the Environment Heritage
and Planning Portfolio Holder, that a further focussed consultation on the retail
strategy and site options in St Austell would be helpful to assist in clarifying a
way forward.
The results of this consultation will assist in informing the Cornwall Site
Allocations Development Plan Document (DPD) in prioritising retail site
allocations for the town. A pre-submission draft of the Cornwall Site Allocations
DPD is due to be consulted on during early 2015.
In parallel to this online consultation document, a household door to door survey
is being undertaken across the town to gather feedback on residents’ views on
retail in St Austell; however please don’t rely on this door-to-door survey to
provide your response; as it will be a randomly selected cross section of
households.
Cornwall Council is seeking feedback on the options that are set out in this
document and a series of questions are highlighted throughout and at the end of
the document.
The closing date for comments is Friday 19 December 2014, you can either
submit your responses by using the online survey, or by post, by hand or email
to:
E-mail: [email protected]
Post: St Austell Retail Consultation, Planning Delivery, Camborne One Stop
Shop, 1st Floor, Dolcoath Avenue, Camborne, TR14 8SX
By hand: FAO Helen Nicholson, Room 208a, St Austell One Stop Shop, 39
Penwinnick Road
This document is available on the Council’s website along with additional Town
Framework background information www.cornwall.gov.uk/staustellframework
1
St Austell Retail Strategy – Options consultation document
1.1. Background
The Cornwall Local Plan: Strategic Policies refers to retail space requirements by
town taken from the Cornwall Retail Study 2010. As a broad guide, when taking
into account what has been built since 2010 and including existing planning
permissions there is capacity in St Austell (up to the year 2030) for:
•
•
1,000sqm of (net sales area) additional convenience floor space (e.g.
supermarkets)
11,000sqm of (net sales area) additional comparison floor space, (e.g.
non-food)
The above shows that the majority of new floorspace should be for non-food
stores. There is also a certain amount of vacant floorspace within the Town
Centre. An update of the Retail Study is currently in progress, it is anticipated
however that the retail space requirements for St Austell will be broadly similar.
As well as the above figures it is understood a significant amount of (non-food)
retail spend in St Austell is lost to Truro and/or Plymouth. On this basis there is
a qualitative argument that St Austell could seek to retain some of this spend
within the town, whilst recognising the roles that Truro and Plymouth play within
the region for retail and will continue to play based on their existing retail offer,
role and locations. In summary this means that there is some level of flexibility
that could be applied to the above retail space requirements for St Austell.
1.2. St Austell Framework Plan Options Consultation Results May
2014
A consultation document for the development of the St Austell Framework Plan
was published in April 2014 for a six week period, it presented various site
options that could deliver residential, employment and retail development in the
town, and asked a series of questions to obtain people’s views and preferences
In relation to retail, the document presented two potential retail strategy options
for the town:
Strategy 1: promotion of the Town Centre and Town Centre sites only, or
Strategy 2: promotion of the Town Centre and further retail uses in close
proximity to the Town Centre if Town Centre sites are not available.
53% of those that responded, at that time, favoured retail strategy 2; 23%
favoured retail strategy 1, and 24% of respondents favoured neither strategy.
In re-consulting on the retail strategy within St Austell, it is appropriate to revisit
and reconsider this question as new information is now available for
consideration.
2
St Austell Retail Strategy – Options consultation document
2.
Retail site options
This consultation document presents six different sites with potential for retail
use. Three are within the town centre and three are out of town centre sites. The
sites are:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Old Vicarage Place
Sedgemoor
Coop, West Hill
Trewhiddle area: East (4A/4B)
Trewhiddle area: West (5)
Coyte Farm
Fig.1 below shows the location of these sites.
Other site options were also considered but discounted due to a number of
reasons. These included:
•
•
•
•
•
being too small
too distant from the town centre
physical and environmental site constraints
existing uses such as car parks
conclusions from the Cornwall Retail Study 2010 that some are unsuitable
for retail use.
This longer list of sites can be viewed in a discounted retail sites background
paper which can be viewed on the Council website.
3
St Austell Retail Strategy – Options consultation document
Figure 1: Retail Site Options
4
St Austell Retail Strategy – Options consultation document
3.
Retail Strategy options
The three Town Centre sites highlighted in Figure 1, along with the three out of
town sites, appear to be the main options that could accommodate further retail
uses within St Austell. In revisiting the question that was posed in the St Austell
Framework Plan Options document, this more focussed retail consultation seeks
to gain views on what is viewed by residents as the preferred retail strategy for
the town. Below are some brief pros and cons of the two potential strategy
options for consideration:
3.1. Potential Retail Strategy 1: Town Centre/edge of centre only
This strategy would seek to prioritise delivery of new retail floor space to only
town centre sites; meaning the strategy would not be actively supporting out of
town retail proposals.
Pros
Cons
•
•
•
•
•
•
Would maximise opportunities to
strengthen the health and vitality of
the town centre
Greater certainty may increase
retailers interest in investing in the
town centre
Could enable a regeneration
development opportunity at Old
Vicarage Place linking to the
existing White River Place shopping
centre, creating a more attractive
retail/leisure destination, and
increasing overall footfall
If sites come forward they could
assist in retaining more spend
within St Austell Town Centre that
is currently lost to other centres
Not supporting out of town
development, would improve the
chances that the town centre sites
could come forward with retail uses
•
•
•
•
If town centre sites are not
deliverable it could hinder
investment in the St Austell area
If town centre sites are not
deliverable more spending could be
lost to other centres e.g. Truro,
Plymouth
Town centre sites may not be
attractive to certain national
retailers
If town centre sites are not
deliverable it could limit retail
related job creation opportunities
Some town centre sites might not
be able to provide larger footprint
retail unit sizes
5
St Austell Retail Strategy – Options consultation document
3.2. Potential Retail Strategy 2: Support Town Centre plus
identify out of centre / out of Town retail
This strategy option would mean support would be given, where possible to the
town centre; but there would also be active encouragement to deliver retail
proposals on an out of centre/town location, as long as it complies with the
National Planning Policy Framework and the emerging Cornwall Local Plan:
Strategic Policies document, in particular Policy 4.
Pros
Cons
•
•
•
•
Could provide retail space to meet
retail needs of residents if town
centre sites are not available or
viable
If town centre sites are not
available or viable an out of centre
site could assist in retaining more
spend within the wider St Austell
area rather than leaking to other
centres (Truro, Plymouth)
Could provide larger footprint
stores, which are attractive to
certain national retailers, which
might be harder to accommodate in
the town centre
•
•
•
Out of centre retail could hinder the
attractiveness and therefore
deliverability of town centre sites
e.g. retailers may not wish to invest
in the town centre and compete
with an out of town retail site.
Depending upon the scale and
location of such a development, it
may have a negative impact on
current trading levels within the
town centre
Retailers currently within the Town
Centre may want to relocate to an
out of town location
Depending upon the location of the
out of town retail, it may not be
easily accessible for pedestrians,
which could promote car based
journeys
Question 1:
Which retail strategy do you think St Austell should adopt for the future? (question
1 continued)
(Please read the following sections before answering this question, which is
repeated at the end of the document)
6
St Austell Retail Strategy – Options consultation document
4.
Town Centre and Edge of Centre Site Options
When reviewing the appropriate retail strategy options for St Austell, it is
important to do this in the knowledge of the sites that might be available to
support the delivery of the strategy. There are three potential site options
highlighted within the town centre for consideration. All three are presented on
the following pages with some brief pros and cons of each:
7
St Austell Retail Strategy – Options consultation document
4.1. Old Vicarage Place
Description/Location/scale
Old Vicarage Place is a
potential redevelopment site
within the Primary Shopping
area of the town. It is
currently a shopping centre
and car park constructed in
the 1980’s which is now run
down in appearance. There is
currently an existing Iceland
store and a number of
vacant units. In terms of
location it is directly adjacent
to the White River Shopping
Centre and therefore is in a
prime retail location.
There are emerging potential
redevelopment proposals for
this 0.4ha site which the
promoters indicate will
provide in the region of
approx. 8,175sqm of comparison (non-food) new net additional retail space, in
the form of either 4 or 5 larger stores, or 1 or 2 larger stores with a greater
number of smaller units, all under cover along with 1,860sqm of associated
restaurant and cafe uses.
Pros
Cons
•
•
•
•
•
•
Within the Town Centre Primary
Shopping Area, so has the greatest
opportunity to have a positive
impact upon the vitality of the Town
Centre by increasing footfall
Within single ownership, which
supports deliverability
The landowner/developer recently
submitted a pre-application enquiry
expressing an interest in bringing
forward a retail scheme, which
could deliver larger footprint stores
Town centre regeneration
opportunity on an existing run down
site which would potentially link
with and expand the White River
Place existing shopping centre
No adverse impact on the natural
environment
•
•
Sloping site (approx. 1:14) and
existing development constraints on
site may make delivery of scheme
more costly to redevelop
Some retail operators may not wish
to locate to town centre sites
Potential for short term adverse
effects in the town centre from any
construction process
8
St Austell Retail Strategy – Options consultation document
4.2. Sedgemoor
Description/location/scale
Sedgemoor is a site with
existing office uses and a
relatively large car park.
Cornwall Council who currently
occupies some of the office
space is vacating the site. It is
understood that the site may
soon be on the market. The
1.2ha site is located within the
town centre close to the Priory
car park and might be able to
accommodate at least
3,100sqm of (net sales area)
retail space. The site could also
accommodate further office
uses and / or a mixed use
scheme incorporating
residential use. There are no
known current proposals.
Pros
Cons
•
•
•
•
•
•
Within the Town Centre and approx.
75m from the Primary Shopping
Area
Could have a positive impact on the
Town Centre by promoting linked
trips, potentially increasing footfall
within the Primary Shopping Area
Conveniently located adjacent to
Priory Car Park
Site within single ownership,
current occupants are vacating and
landowner looking to dispose of the
site, which could provide
opportunity for change of use to
retail
Site already developed so little
impact on the natural environment
•
•
•
•
The site has potential for other uses
as well, such as retention of the
office space or as a mixed used /
residential site
Unknown if the site is attractive to
potential retailers and no known
interest for retail development
(although there might be interest if
promoted within the strategy)
Sloping site (approx. 1:14) and
existing development constraints on
site may make delivery of scheme
more costly to redevelop
The topography of the access
through Priory Car Park and access
from Truro Road may have an
impact on the deliverability of
proposals, which may limit the
attractiveness of the site to certain
retailers and scale of any scheme
Potential loss of office uses from
this town centre location (although
current tenants of the offices are
already leaving)
9
St Austell Retail Strategy – Options consultation document
4.3. Co-op, Car park and adjacent area
Description/location/scale
This 1.2ha site with an existing Co-op store on West Hill, its car park and an
adjoining area of currently unused land is another potential redevelopment
option that could provide some retail uses. The site might be able to
accommodate a small net increase of around 600 sqm (net sales area) of retail
floorspace (Council estimate). There are no known current proposals.
Pros
Cons
•
•
•
•
•
Relatively flat site which could make
delivery of retail space more cost
effective
Within the town centre and 140m
(as the crow flies) to the Primary
Shopping Area
Site already developed so little
impact on the natural environment
Potential opportunity to enhance
the surrounding built environment
with an appropriate scheme
•
•
•
•
Existing store and car park on the
majority of the site so estimated to
only offer potential for a small
amount of additional net sales area
retail floorspace
Scale of development possible is
unlikely to have any measurable
impact on the vitality of the town
centre
Although it’s within the town centre,
it is a relatively short but steep
walk to the Primary Shopping Area
Edge of centre location may not be
attractive to some retailers
Small area within two ownerships
and the linear shape of the site are
both factors which could hinder
potential for larger redevelopment
schemes
10
St Austell Retail Strategy – Options consultation document
5.
Out of Centre & Out of Town Site Options
If the second retail strategy option in St Austell is preferred (i.e. to promote the
town centre AND out of town development) site(s) to deliver this strategy would
need to be identified. With this strategy, emerging policy within the Cornwall
Local Plan will still advocate taking a sequential approach to the identification of
sites 1; plus edge of centre and out of town proposals will still need to
demonstrate that they wouldn’t have a ‘significant’ adverse impact upon the
town centre.
In considering this strategy there are three potential locations identified that
could provide for out of town retail uses. These are set out on the following
pages with some brief pros and cons of each for consideration:
1
Policy 4 of the Cornwall Local Plan requires a sequential approach to be followed requiring an
assessment of the town centre first before considering edge or out of centre or out of town sites
11
St Austell Retail Strategy – Options consultation document
5.1. Trewhiddle Area: East (4A/4B) and West (5)
Description/location/scale
This out of town centre area is shown with two site areas: 4A and 4B as one
option in the east and site 5 in the west. The wider area shown in a blue line is
an urban extension area that may also provide opportunity for residential and
some employment uses, i.e. the two retail options could form part of a wider
mixed use development proposal.
East 4A/4B
Sites A and B behind and around the B&Q store and the Council Offices has the
potential to accommodate some retail uses. An exact site area would be
determined at a more detailed masterplanning stage, but could be in the region
of around 4ha, split into two parcels (A and B).This might accommodate in the
region of 11,400sqm of (net sales area) retail floor space (Council estimate).
There is an existing planning permission for a Morrison’s supermarket that sits
between the two parcels of land. Site A may potentially be a preferred location
due to the relationship with potential movement to and from the Town Centre.
However site B could also accommodate retail as well. There are no known
current proposals.
12
St Austell Retail Strategy – Options consultation document
Pros
• Site A is relatively flat which could
make delivery of retail space more
cost effective
• It is the closest out of town site
option to the existing town centre
area. This means it has the greatest
potential to see ‘linked trips’
between the site and the town
centre; which in turn could reduce
the scale of the negative impact
upon it
• As the crow flies site A is 40m from
the town centre and 265m from the
Primary Shopping Area; site B is
370m from the town centre and
590m from the Primary Shopping
Area
• Could assist in retaining more retail
spend within the wider St Austell
area that currently leaks to other
centres e.g. Truro, Plymouth
• Development on sites A and B could
consolidate out of town retail
development into one location,
being adjacent to B&Q, the
permitted Morrisons store and other
larger footprint commercial uses
• Parts of the site may be suitable for
larger footprint stores
• Site A already has existing
development on it so little impact
on the natural environment
• Owners of site interested in bringing
forward developments
• Could be an attractive site to
national retailers that may not wish
to invest in the town centre
Cons
• Site B slopes slightly (1:17)
• The A390 which is busy is a
potential movement barrier for
pedestrians to/from the Town
Centre
• Depending on the scale and nature
of retail development it could have
some detrimental impact on the
town centre, although the impact
could be lower due to the size of
sites and closer proximity to the
town centre, compared to the other
out of town site options presented.
If the scale of negative impact upon
the town centre was subsequently
deemed ‘significant’ this would go
against Policy 4 of the Cornwall
Local Plan: Strategic Policies
document. For a scheme to still
proceed in these circumstances it
would need to demonstrate other
positive factors that would outweigh
the harm
• If the sites came forward in the
short to medium term it may deter
retailers interested in investing in
Town Centre sites, stifling their
delivery
• Sites A and B are in different
ownerships and it is not clear if
parts of area (A) will be available
• Site B is currently agricultural land;
potential for archaeological features
on site
• No firm proposals for retail schemes
at this stage
13
St Austell Retail Strategy – Options consultation document
West 5
An area in the west of the Trewhiddle urban extension area (site 5) is also being
promoted by a developer for retail uses. An exact site area is not known but
could be around 3 to 4ha which could accommodate approx. 7,000 sqm of (net
sales area) retail floor space (developers estimate).
Pros
• Relatively flat site which could
support larger footprint stores and
make delivery of retail space more
cost effective
• Potentially a significant area which
could provide a significant increase
in retail floorspace for St Austell
• Could assist in retaining more retail
spend within the wider St Austell
area that currently leaks to other
centres e.g. Truro, Plymouth
• Land is under single ownership with
owners interested in bringing
forward retail development within
this general location
Cons
• As the crow flies site 5 is 540m
from the town centre and 740m
from the Primary Shopping Area
• The A390 which is busy is a
potential movement barrier for
pedestrians to/from the Town
Centre
• Depending on the scale and nature
of retail development it could have
a detrimental impact on the town
centre. If the scale of negative
impact upon the town centre was
subsequently deemed ‘significant’
this would go against Policy 4 of the
Cornwall Local Plan: Strategic
Policies document. For a scheme to
still proceed in these circumstances
it would need to demonstrate other
positive factors that would outweigh
the harm
• If the site came forward in the short
to medium term it may deter
retailers interested in investing in
Town Centre sites stifling their
delivery
• Site is currently agricultural land
and is a relatively sensitive
landscape; potential for
archaeological features on site
14
St Austell Retail Strategy – Options consultation document
5.2. Coyte Farm
Description/location/scale
This is an out of town undeveloped
site which is currently farmland.
Representations were made to the
St Austell Framework for its
inclusion. This site was being
promoted by a developer. An
exact site area is now unknown
but could be in the region of up to
6.3ha and could deliver at least
10,500sqm of non-food (net sales
area) retail floorspace (developer’s
previous estimate). It is located
within Pentewan Valley Parish.
There are no known new proposals
following an application earlier in
2014.
Pros
• Flattest site which could
make it easier to bring
forward larger footprint
stores
• Could assist in retaining
more retail spend within
the wider St Austell area
that currently leaks to
other centres e.g. Truro,
Plymouth
• Land controlled by one
party and developer
interest in bringing
forward a retail scheme
on the site
• Largest site option,
which means it could
accommodate the
largest amount of new
retail floorspace, if a
non-food scheme went
beyond the previous
development proposal.
• Could be an attractive
site to national retailers
that may not wish to
invest in the town centre
Cons
• Depending on the scale and nature of retail
development it could have the greatest
detrimental impact upon the vitality of the
town centre, due to both scale and distance
from the town centre. If the scale of negative
impact upon the town centre was subsequently
deemed ‘significant’ this would go against
Policy 4 of the Cornwall Local Plan: Strategic
Policies document. For a scheme to still
proceed in these circumstances it would need
to demonstrate other positive factors that
would outweigh the harm
• As the crow flies it is 835m from the town
centre and 1024m from the Primary Shopping
Area
• Located on agricultural land and over a ridge
line which means any development would face
away from the town towards open countryside
and St Mewan (including the listed church), so
could be argued to have the most significant
visual impact of all the sites. Known
archaeological features on site
• If the site came forward in the short to medium
term it may deter retailers interest in investing
in Town Centre sites stifling their delivery
• Due to its location would not be easily
accessible for pedestrians and would promote
access by car
15
St Austell Retail Strategy – Options consultation document
Question 2
If a strategy is pursued that requires the identification of a further retail site
outside of the town centre, which site… (question 2 continued)
16
6.
Questions
1. Which retail strategy do you think St Austell should adopt for the future?
(please tick one)
a. Strategy 1: Only concentrate on the delivery of town centre and
edge of centre sites
b. Strategy 2: Support town centre sites where possible AND
identify an out of centre/out of town retail development
c. An alternative proposal. If so, please state:
back to Retail Strategy Options
2. If a strategy is pursued that requires the identification of a further retail site
outside of the town centre, which would be your preferred site? (please tick
one)
a. Trewhiddle East (4A/4B)
b. Trewhiddle West (5)
c. Coyte Farm (6)
d. An alternative site (Please state):
e. None, because I don’t support further out of town development
(Question 3 overleaf)
17
3. Of all sites listed please give your preference in order from 1 to 7 (1 being
highest preference site, 7 being lowest preference site)
Highest
preference
1
Lowest
preference
2
3
4
5
6
7
Old Vicarage Place
Co-op
Sedgemoor
Trewhiddle East (4A)
Trewhiddle East (4B)
Trewhiddle West (5)
Coyte
4. Do you have any other comments on the two retail strategy options or the
individual sites?
18
If you would like this information in another format or language
please contact:
Cornwall Council
County Hall
Treyew Road
Truro TR1 3AY
Telephone: 0300 1234 100
Email: [email protected]
www.cornwall.gov.uk
19