COUNCILLORS will visit the site of the proposed Wilkinson store in Bordon today (Friday) to judge if the area is suitable for the new shop.

The site visit will give councillors from East Hampshire District Council's north planning committee a chance to familiarise themselves with the site.

The decision over the controversial application is expected at next Thursday's north planning meeting.

The site proposed for the development is north of 47 Forest Road, Whitehill, Bordon, the building would be a two-storey retail unit and nine flats with a basement car park which would hold nine cars.

The applicant, Broadmeadow Ltd, has agreed to also provide a pedestrian route across the site.

Other retailers have objected to the application, worried that Wilkinson would have a knock on effect on the balance of shopping in the Forest Centre.

Whitehill Town Council has expressed a number of reservations over the proposed development. One of its main concerns is the car parking in the area and the number of additional cars the shopping is likely to bring, in addition to employees' cars.

It has generally welcomed the arrival of an additional retail outlet in the town, but has raised queries over the level of retail space on offer, claiming that the land is not being best utilised to its full potential.