Starbucks plans for drive-thru cafe in Kelso get green light following appeal
'It is a site that has been vacant for around 30 years and it is an eyesore...'
Last updated 15th Sep 2025
Starbucks has been given the green light to open a drive-thru coffee shop in Kelso - subject to conditions.
The £1.5 million development proposed for an area of derelict land next to the former homeless unit at Maxmill Park is expected to create between 20 and 30 jobs.
It was initially refused by Scottish Borders Council’s planning department amid concerns it would be “incongruous” to the area and could harm the “vitality and viability” of the town centre.
But councillors on the authority's Local Review Body have this morning (Monday) overturned that decision, by four votes to two.
Speaking in support of the application, Councillor Simon Mountford (Conservative, Kelso and District), who chairs the committee, told members: "I think the appellant has made clear that they have done a thorough search for alternative sites in the town, and there are none available.
"I am not persuaded that this is a residential area. The maps make quite clear that the land to the north, east and, principally, the majority of land to the west are all industrial/commercial.
"But it is a site that has been vacant for around 30 years and it is an eyesore."
Councillor Mountford added: "I think too the significance of the former cafe at Sainsbury's and the current application to reopen that cafe indicates that the principal of having a cafe in that neighbourhood is accepted.
"The difference between the previous cafe and the proposed cafe is that this is a drive-thru.
"But, as the roads planning officers have made clear, this drive-thru facility will appeal to a different clientele than that would normally go into the town centre."
Today's meeting heard 84 objections had been lodged against the application, while there were 35 comments in support.
Councillors Sandy Scott (Conservative, Jedburgh and District) and Viv Thomson (SNP, Tweeddale West) voted against the application, while Councillors Mountford, Donald Moffat (SNP, Mid Berwickshire), Eric Small (Conservative, Tweeddale West) and Marshall Douglas (SNP, Tweeddale East) voted in support.
Councillor Scott said he thought the development would be contrary to the Local Plan and detract from the residential character of Station Road.
But Councillor Moffat believes the drive-thru is a "well thought out development" and a "good use of a former industrial site".
He added: "I'm not a Starbucks fan, I don't drink coffee so it's not something that I would be going to. But a business is a business, and a business in a business park is not unusual; it's normal."
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Councillor Thomson was worried about the impact the development would have on neighbouring homes with the potential for increased noise and traffic.
But Councillor Douglas said: "I think it would actually be a very positive development for Kelso. It might actually bring more people, that spill over into the town centre, and I think there would be a knock on benefit there."
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