Kenilworth Town Council objects to planned redevelopment of Warwick Road shops

[dutchman]

Plans to redevelop a set of shops along Warwick Road into accommodation and retail units have been objected to by members of Kenilworth Town Council.



Should the plans go ahead, haberdashers Karen Delahunty Sewing & Knitting Centre, computer shop Techpoint and salon Cutz would all be adversely affected during the redevelopment.

In a comment submitted to Warwick District Council, the town council said the proposal would create an ‘unreasonable loss of retail space’, was ‘detrimental to the streetscene’ and ‘constituted overdevelopment.’

Chairman of the town council’s planning committee Cllr George Illingworth (Con, Abbey), said: “Anything that loses retail space in Kenilworth is a worry because we want to be a thriving town.

“We are concerned about anything which drives businesses out of town. The only way we can express it in planning terms is that it affects the viability of the businesses.

“Nobody would worry about the loss of the 1960s buildings in principle, but the retail space would be halved and that is too much.”

He also said the new shops and accommodation would overshadow the listed building at 84 Warwick Road.

The public have also sent in objections to the district council.

Wayne Mulhall, who runs Cutz, said: “We will not be able to trade during the redevelopment and hence we will not only lose our business of 27 years, one of the longest trading businesses in Kenilworth, but it will also mean that five other people will lose their livelihoods.”

Martin Turner, of Glasshouse Lane, said: “No consideration is given to the access and egress of the site, onto what is already a highly populated, heavily parked cut through road from the main town.

“Leaving this space by car is already dangerous due to the close parking spots and with a high volume of pedestrians using the footpath.”

The date when the district council’s planning committee will make a decision on the plans has yet to be confirmed.