Plans for a new Lidl store on the site of a former nursing home in Belle Vale have been met with criticism from a rival supermarket.
The German retailer has lodged an application to open a new store on Childwall Valley Road but the plans have been objected to by Morrisons which has a branch of its own less than a mile away. Liverpool Council ’s planning committee will decide the matter when it meets on Tuesday.
Documents submitted as part of Lidl’s application detail how it also expects to draw 35% of its trade from a nearby Aldi store on Gateacre Park Drive. The report said the popular brand is seeking to open a new store on land previously occupied by a pub, bookmakers and Childwall Brook Nursing Home.
READ MORE: Man held loaded gun to his head outside Royal Liverpool Hospital
It is said the site “occupies a prominent position on a busy part of Childwall Valley Road” but is now vacant following the demolition of the buildings over the last decade. The application seeks to secure full permission for the store with 115 car parking spaces.
Ward Councillors Paulin Walton, Ruth Bennett and Helen Thompson advised that while they welcome the development, they have “grave concerns” regarding the traffic management on Childwall Valley Road and Chelwood Avenue should the application be approved. More than 60 objections have been lodged against the proposals, including that on behalf of Morrisons, which claims it will impact residential amenity and will add retail impact issues.
Planning consultants Peacock and Smith, on behalf of the chain, said the new store could lead to Morrisons “trading below company average levels” and the proposed £3.39m to be invested by Lidl would hit its turnover by almost 20%. The report added that the Morrisons store is considered to be an integral part of Belle Vale district centre and the impact on it as an anchor store could have wider impacts for the entire centre.
Not content with taking on Morrisons, Lidl has also targeted low-cost rival Aldi and expects to take around a third of its business from a neighbouring store. The report stated that: “the applicant expects the proposal to represent a direct alternative to the Aldi Store on Gateacre Park Drive.”
The opening hours of the Lidl store would be 7am to 10pm Monday to Saturday and six hours within the range of 10am to 6pm on Sundays. Council planning officers have recommended the scheme be approved, subject to Aldi entering into a Section 106 agreement.
