Assessment of Planning and Retail Issues - Renfrewshire Council

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PROPOSED EXTENSIONS AT 14 ASSESSMENT OF PLANNING AND RETAIL ISSUES BRAEHEAD RETAIL PARK MAY 2010 relating to support for investment in Commercial Centres. Furthermore this proposal is being taken forward only on the basis that approval of the additional retail floorspace will result in the prevention, by legal agreement, of any additional internal mezzanine floors in the retail park which otherwise could be installed without requiring planning permission. Thus the result of approving these proposals will be to reinforce the effectiveness of Policy R13, notwithstanding its non-compliance with the SPP. 2.46 Consequently, although the proposal amounts to a departure from Policy R13, it is considered that the departure is not significant, because (1) the additional floorspace is far less than could be provided by way of mezzanine floors in the retail park, which in future will be under the full control of the council because of the effect of the new legal agreement, and (2) in the light of national retail planning policy set out in the SPP, it is no longer appropriate to impose blanket presumptions against additional retail floorspace at the Braehead Retail Park, which is now designated as a Commercial Centre. Policy R16 2.47 Policy R16 is described in the Local Plan as referring to the “area of the Braehead shopping mall and indoor sports area, with associated parking”. The area-specific wording dates from around eight years ago when the Local Plan was finalised prior to the Local Plan Inquiry. Following the inquiry, the Reporter appointed to conduct the inquiry and make recommendations to the council concluded that the whole of Braehead should be included in a single planning policy area reflecting its strategic importance, rather than having two separate policies for the mall and retail park. The Reporter’s recommendation was not accepted at the time by the council, primarily because the Structure Plan also had separate policies for the mall and retail park. However the Fourth Alteration of the Structure Plan has designated both Braehead Centre and the retail park as two adjoining Commercial Centres, which combine to make one single centre, and thus it is logical that Policy R16 should apply to the centre as a whole. Furthermore the title ‘Braehead Regional Shopping and Leisure Centre’ is customarily taken to apply to Braehead Centre, the retail park, IKEA and Xscape - comprising all of Braehead’s retail and leisure elements. 2.48 It is relevant that the proposal to relocate the Sainsbury’s superstore into the former B&Q Warehouse in the retail park was assessed by the council against the terms of Policy R16, reinforcing the view that the policy should be applied to the
PROPOSED EXTENSIONS AT 15 ASSESSMENT OF PLANNING AND RETAIL ISSUES BRAEHEAD RETAIL PARK MAY 2010 whole of Braehead. 2.49 Policy R16 states that Braehead is allocated for the uses specified in the original planning permission, and that additional development proposals will be supported when they satisfy the Structure Plan and the criteria in Table R1. As has been shown earlier, the current proposals satisfy both the Structure Plan and the tests in Table R1. Therefore it is in accord with Policy R16. Policy Conclusions 2.50 Braehead is one of the principal drivers of economic regeneration in Scotland’s national strategic regeneration priority area - the Clyde Corridor - and is a vital long-term catalyst for regeneration and renewal in Renfrewshire. The approved Structure Plan make clears the continuing importance of that catalytic benefit in maintaining progress with urban renewal along the Clyde Waterfront. This in turn means ensuring that investment can continue to be attracted to Braehead. Similarly the Local Plan recognises the importance of maintaining the Braehead asset for the benefit of Renfrewshire. 2.51 The current proposals for the retail park satisfy the tests laid down in the Structure Plan’s Strategic Policy 9 (which in turn ensures compliance with other relevant policies in the Structure Plan), and they do not amount to a material departure from the provisions of the Local Plan - subject to the expenditure and impact issues which are addressed in the following section of this report.
Page 1 and 2: Proposed Extensions at Braehead Ret
Page 3 and 4: 1 INTRODUCTION The Proposals 1.1 Br
Page 5 and 6: PROPOSED EXTENSIONS AT 3 ASSESSMENT
Page 13 and 14: PROPOSED EXTENSIONS AT 11 ASSESSMEN
Page 15: PROPOSED EXTENSIONS AT 13 ASSESSMEN
Page 35 and 36: Table 1 Population Estimates - Brae
Page 37 and 38: Table 3 Comparison Expenditure Esti
Page 39 and 40: Table 5 Shopping Patterns in Main C
Page 45 and 46: Table 11 Changes to Glasgow City Ce
Page 47 and 48: Table 13 Estimated Total Turnover a
Page 53 and 54: Table 19 Potential Turnover - B&Q S
Page 57: Table 23 Estimated Turnover of Addi

Assessment of Planning and Retail Issues - Renfrewshire Council

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