MONMOUTHSHIRE County Council has given the green light to plans to create a business park and cattle market at Llanfoist although plans for further development on the former Coopers Filters site have been delayed on design grounds. At the authority's planning committee meeting earlier this week councillors voted to approve outline planning permission for a proposed Westgate Business Park off Merthyr Road in Llanfoist. The proposed park will include a 1,400 square metres builders merchants; five single storey units (total size 1,160 square metres); a business park comprising 23 two storey units (7,040 square metres); two high technology/light industrial units (970 square metres) and a cattle market (3,800 square metres) with an access road and link road through the site. Llanfoist's county Councillor Eric Saxon said he was surprised at the inclusion of the cattle market in the proposal and was concerned about its close proximity to residential housing, the extra traffic it would create as well as noise and smell. Head of Planning at Monmouthshire County Council, George Ashworth told the committee that it was unlikely that the cattle market would be built at the site because there were proposals for it to be built elsewhere which would be found more favourable by the council and said that its inclusion in the outline proposal was a, "fall back," measure. Outline planning permission for plans to split the former Cooper's site owned by Johnsey Estates into a four hectares residential area with 160 houses and a non-food retail development area was turned down. As part of the application the site is proposed to be developed in its front, south western corner for a DIY retail unit and garden centre with associated parking for 206 cars. There would also be space for further retail development which can not be found in the town centre with an additional 155 parking spaces. George Ashworth told the committee that the remainder of the site would be developed for residential purposes and that 20 per cent of the 160 houses would be affordable. Access to the site is proposed to be from a traffic light controlled junction in close proximity to the Waitrose roundabout. Councillor Eric Saxon said he didn't think there would be a great deal of opposition to the proposal locally as the DIY store would act as a sound barrier from the traffic using the Heads of the Valleys Dual carriageway. His views for suitable pedestrian and cyclist links put in place between Llanfoist, the site and Abergavenny was shared by a number of the committee. Councillor Douglas Edwards said he was in full support of the residential part of the plan but couldn't imagine that people would want to live alongside a huge DIY store. He also questioned the need for a garden centre when there were two located nearby and another three within five miles of the site. Councillors Rob Greenland and Ashley Thomas both expressed their concerns regarding the design of the site, particularly its access. Chairman of the committee Councillor Peter Clark said, "We are a planning committee not a finance raising committee and I would prefer the site to be only residential." Regarding the DIY store he said that it was something which 'nobody would want to look at whilst sitting in their back garden.' Councillor Ashley Thomas moved to turn down the proposal on design grounds which was seconded and voted through. The Chronicle understands that a revised outline proposal with amendments will be submitted in the next few weeks.
