Plans for new petrol station in Elmswell refused
The petrol forecourt would have gone close to the DVSA building, just off the A14
Last updated 5th Feb 2023
An application for a petrol station in Elmswell was refused today after the applicant lodged an appeal.
The applicant lodged an appeal on the grounds that Mid Suffolk District Council had not decided whether to approve the proposals, which came before them last September.
The council’s development committee were “minded to” refuse the application at last year’s meeting but decided to wait for further officer advice before making a decision.
The reasons for this support for refusal were highways and heritage concerns. Independent advice by transport consultants hired by the council after September found that highway safety was a fair reason for refusal.
According to the council’s consultants, the amount of traffic that would be generated by the petrol station had been underestimated by the applicant’s consultants.
The council’s consultants said: “This clearly has implications for the conclusions drawn about the capacity of the roundabout on the A1088 – particularly its interaction with vehicles leaving the development.
“It also has an impact on the propensity for excessive queuing on the A14 off-slip roads”.
The site put forward by the applicants is adjacent to a DVSA building and to the north-east of the A14 trunk road.
The development would have included a four-pump petrol station, a retail store, two drive-through restaurants and parking space.
Councillors’ fears around heritage at the September meeting were not found by officers to be grounds for refusal.
The nearby heritage assets are the grade-one listed Church of St Mary Woolpit, the grade two star-listed St John Church Elmswell and the grade two-listed crossways.
The officers’ report considered by the committee today states: “The advice of planning officers is that the public benefits associated with the delivery of the proposed businesses and services outweigh the harm to the significance of heritage assets.”
They considered the level of harm posed to the assets to be “low level of less than substantial”.
Historic England were not opposed to the petrol station, but 66 out of 68 representations by residents favoured objection.
The planning statement on behalf of applicant Euro Garages Ltd said: “The works would result in the active and sustainable long-term use of a vacant, strategically located site on the A14.
“They would bring significant benefits to the local economy and enhance the area’s social infrastructure.”