Warwick residents object to 24-hour McDonald's

[dutchman]

McDonald's has applied for the restaurant on Tesco's Emscote Road site to open 24 hours a day



Twenty four-hour opening at a McDonald's looks set to be approved despite a community backlash.

Residents fear drug-related problems, noise, litter and antisocial behaviour near the site in Warwick will worsen if the change goes through.

The district council's planning committee have been recommended to approve a lifting of restrictions on opening hours at the Emscote Road site in Warwick.

Permission was granted for the restaurant next to Tesco in 2019, with conditions that limited its daily operational hours to between 06:00 and 23:00 GMT.

Opening hour conditions were originally implemented to minimise "nuisance or disturbance" to nearby residential properties, according to council documents.

Resident Ross More urged the council to reject the new application.

"This is a densely populated residential area and (this) will cause undue noise, unsocial behaviour, traffic and litter," he wrote.

"There were (around) 240 local resident objections to the original application but permission was granted with the conditions. I cannot see what has changed."

Another, Janine Farmer, argued: "Once the planning was first approved it was on the premise that it would never be 24 hours. There was concern at the time they would try to open at night but promises were made that it would not be allowed.

"Drug dealing is a particular issue in the area and having the restaurant open at night encourages undesirables to use the place for deals and drug taking."

A noise management plan submitted with the application includes asking customers to keep noise down, use of CCTV and bans for those who cause problems.

The council's report stated officers were satisfied with evidence submitted and the proposal would not cause "any additional undue harm to neighbouring amenity".

The planning committee meets to discuss the application on Wednesday.

[dutchman]

McDonald's allowed to open 24 hours a day



Plans to open a branch of McDonald's for 24 hours a day have been given the green light.

The operators of the fast food restaurant on Emscote Road, Warwick, had applied to lift conditions that restricted opening times to between 06:00 and 23:00.

Members of Warwick District Council's planning committee approved the application but only for an initial period of 12 months.

The meeting on Wednesday heard the restriction had been added when the branch was originally granted planning permission.

Councillor Becky Davidson said she was concerned over the potential for anti-social behaviour, adding that she was "confused" as to why there had been no objection from police.

Councillor Claire Wightman sympathised with the concerns but said she was in support of giving the restaurant an initial 12-month approval.

The proposal gained unanimous support from the committee but the 24-hour opening will also require a licence from Warwick District Council.