THE appeal over the refusal to grant permission for a foodstore and 16 affordable housing apartments at Lower Turk Street, Alton, is to be determined by a public inquiry. The proposals require demolition of Minnesota's nightclub opposite Coors Brewery, and the uprooting of allotments. A proposal by McCarthy and Stone to build 37 sheltered apartments for the elderly on the remainder of the site was also turned down by East Hampshire planners, but that application is not subject to an appeal. In refusing all three, East Hampshire planners said that the proposals had failed as a package to provide a cohesive design or address the need for a comprehensive solution to the development of the site. The result was "a poor layout and design" which, in the opinion of the Planning Authority, "failed to address the needs of this prominent edge of town centre site." For the foodstore, planners objected to the absence of a retail impact assessment and that sufficient information had not been submitted to justify the loss of the nightclub. There was concern too over the nuisance from delivery vehicles, plant, recycling facilities and store opening hours and the impact of any contamination on the site having regard to its previous uses. The development had sparked concern that the roads to and from the site would be inadequate to accommodate the additional traffic. And inadequate visibility splays had been proposed at the junction of the access with Lower Turk Street which, it was feared, would cause danger and inconvenience to users of the adjoining highway. Planners considered that there was inadequate provision for the parking and manoeuvring of vehicles clear of the highway and that the site could not enable goods vehicles to turn within it. Aldi Stores Ltd has lodged two appeals, one for the foodstore, the other for the 16 apartments, both of which will be debated during the public inquiry, the date of which is yet to be set.
