A SUPERMARKET in the heart of Sale Moor has been given the green light.

Around 60 people turned out to hear Trafford Council’s planning committee determination on the controversial proposal to build a supermarket on the site of the IMO car wash, 26a Marsland Road and Warrener Street car park last night.

The application was approved by the committee, much to the dismay of campaigners opposed to the supermarket.

Today, children from the village tied ribbons around the car park, some with signs attached saying ‘Save our Park’, as well as hanging up balloons. 

Sale Moor Community Interest Company said that despite the ‘disappointing’ result, the group was heartened to receive a tweet from Leader of Trafford Council, Sean Anstee, after the meeting.

Cllr Anstee had refused to sell the council-owned Warrener Street car park to the developer late last year and committed to an options appraisal on the land.

A spokesperson for We Are Sale Moor Community Interest Company said: “We are obviously disappointed that planning permission was granted for this development.  We strongly believe that it is far too large for the location and that it will adversely impact on an already poor traffic situation in our village. 

"We are concerned that the Highways Agency report, which suggested that impact on traffic will be minimal, was produced several years ago.  While the report submitted meets the legal requirement, we do not believe it meets the council’s duty of care to residents.  As one of the councillors who spoke in the meeting commented, this could be an accident waiting to happen, which echoes the conversations of many village shoppers on a daily basis.  Let’s hope that is not the case.

“Our fight is not over though: the developer doesn’t own the land and Sean Anstee, leader of Trafford Council, has assured us that he will work with the community to decide the best option for that site and we are looking forward to working with him on that.

“We’d like to thank the councillors who have supported us and want to say to the community of Sale Moor: we have a lot more work to do and we know we can count on their continued support.”

There has also been support for the application in the village and campaigners in favour of the application were delighted that the supermarket got the go-ahead.

Kirkland Developments, the firm behind the supermarket plans, said they were pleased with the outcome of the meeting and looking to the future.

A spokesperson said: “This development will create a low cost, easily accessible store and provide a wider variety of choice for people in Sale Moor and the surrounding area.

“We have worked hard over the past several months to listen to the community to ensure that the plans will deliver an attractive development that also provides wide-ranging benefits, including 40 new jobs, 90 car parking spaces and much needed highways improvements at the junction of Northenden Road and Marsden Road.

“I would also like to take the time to thank the community campaigners that have worked tirelessly over many years to support the idea of a foodstore at this location; I hope that we will see this development come to fruition one day. This scheme will now be considered as part of a range of possibilities for the future of the site, as Trafford Council undertakes an options appraisal into Warrener Street car park.”