Aldi refused planning permission for store in Mayo town

An application to develop an Aldi discount store in Swinford has been refused planning permission by Mayo County Council following concerns raised over its location.

The German discount store giants applied for planning permission to construct a single storey discount foodstore to be located across the road from the existing Tesco supermarket in Swinford.

The building was to comprise a gross floor area of 1,908 square metres with one vehicular entrance from the Castlebar Road and the provision one vehicular and one pedestrian access from the Kiltimagh Road.

It was also to be served by 112 car parking spaces including seven disabled accessible bays, nine family bays, four electric vehicle bays and 18 cycle spaces.

READ: Heineken to assist Mayo publican find a successor to family pub

However, Mayo County Council planners expressed concerns throughout the planning process regarding the location of the store and that it would give rise to an over-concentration of retail development and be 'detrimental to the traditional core town centre'.

In refusing planning permission for the development, Mayo County Council stated that if granted the proposed development would have an adverse impact on the 'vitality, viability and attractiveness of the existing traditional town centre of Swinford', and if permitted would result in 'an over-concentration of retail development, both convenience and comparison in this area of Swinford town'.

The planners also cited traffic concerns regarding how HGV traffic will safely access and egress the site from the serving public road and that the applicant did not demonstrate how the development promotes pedestrian connectivity with the existing town centre.

If the application had been successful, the Swinford store would have been the seventh Aldi discount store in Co Mayo with stores already in Castlebar, Ballina, Claremorris, Ballinrobe, Ballyhaunis and Belmullet.

In their application to Mayo County Council, MKO Planning and Environmental Consultancy, acting on behalf of Aldi Stores Ireland, argued that of the two supermarkets in Swinford, only Kennedy's Eurospar was located in the ‘traditional core town centre’ and as a consequence there was no over concentration of retail development.

They also argued that Swinford town centre cannot accommodate a modern large-scale convenience retail development without 'the requirement for significant site assembly, demolition and potential impacts on the traditional and established street frontage pattern'.

“Therefore, modern large-scale convenience retail development in Swinford must be accommodated on suitably zoned lands which adjoin the ‘traditional town centre’,” the application stated.

A number of submissions were received by Mayo County Council from local people outlining their objection to the development with many arguing it was in the wrong location and would be detrimental to the town centre.

Some also rejected suggestions from Aldi that €13 million of consumer spending which is lost to the town will remain and it will have no damage to the existing spend in the smaller local businesses.