Burghfield shopping and leisure centre hits stumbling block

T A Saunders Trustees want to build a 2,879 sq m supermarket, 60 bed care home, pub, nursery, five two bedroom apartments as well as 465 sq m of retail space on land north east of Firlands Farm, Hollybush Lane, Burghfield Common.
However, this week the plans were deemed invalid by West Berkshire Council after it came to light that a small piece of highways land near the site is not owned by T A Saunders Trustees.
In a letter to Pegasus Planning Group, which along with Henry Davidson Developments Burghfield Common Limited are submitting the plans on behalf of T A Saunders Trustees, West Berkshire Council planning officer, Emma Fuller said: “We have been made aware that the certificates of ownership are incorrect, this application is not valid and cannot be made valid: consequently no further action will be taken on it and it will be deemed determined as invalid due to incorrect certificates.”
The plans have already come under attack from villagers and local campaign group Residents Against Firlands Square.
This week West Berkshire Council confirmed it has received more than 1,500 letters of objection to the application.
Campaigners argue the development would force independent stores to close as well as increase traffic in the village.
“The village has all the shops it needs,” said owner of Sharisse Hair Fashions, which has been based in Clayhill Road for 25 years.
“If this development goes ahead it will make this side of the village derelict. There won’t be enough trade for everyone to survive so the independent shops will suffer.
“If we wanted to live in a town then we’d move to a town,” she added.
However, T A Saunders Trustees argues there is a need for more shops in the village to serve its 6,000.inhabitants.
The applicant also says that while traffic movements will increase the wider road network is already well used by residents.
Spokesman for Pegasus Planning Group, Rob Duff said T A Saunders Trustees would make a comment to the Newbury Weekly News in due course.
The plans’ highway works include new accesses into the site, crossings for pedestrians and traffic calming measures.