A COMPANY that has invested £4million into Abergavenny has submitted plans for a supermarket and retail park scheme, which it says could bring 300 jobs to the town.

If given the green light the proposal, entitled The Gavenny Gate development, would see a supermarket together with two non food retail units rise out of the ashes of the former Coopers Filters site opposite Waitrose at Llanfoist.

The scheme is being brought forward and would be developed by South Wales-based firm Johnsey Estates.

The 47,000 sq ft supermarket would be joined by two 7,500 sq ft non food retail outlets on the site which is bounded by a 150-unit, new-build residential development- a mix of social, affordable and market value homes.

Johnsey Estates has already invested £4million into infrastructure work, roads and drainage, at Llanfoist to the west of Abergavenny. The supermarket and retail scheme would add a further £8million to that development total.

Johnsey Estates Managing Director, Mr Terry Johnsey, said, "Gavenny Gate promises to offer the people of Abergavenny and the surrounding area much greater choice in their shopping.

"The six acre site is ready and deliverable. It is highly accessible, especially from the improved A465 Heads of the Valley road. It is a sustainable development with unrivalled communication links and is on a brown field site.

"The development will remove the need for people from Abergavenny to travel out of the town to do their supermarket shopping at Brynmawr, Ebbw Vale, Cwmbran and Newport. We already have detailed consent for non food retail on the site and, subject to planning and final agreement, we're confident Abergavenny's new supermarket could be built, open and trading - with the minimum of disruption to local people- by Autumn 2011 leading directly to the creation of 100s of new jobs for local people to compensate for the loss of jobs when Coopers/Sogefi moved to Tredegar," said Mr Johnsey.

"Currently figures show some forty per cent of people travel out of Abergavenny, to places such as Ebbw Vale and Brynmawr, to do their shopping. We are therefore delighted to be in a position to do our bit to help reverse this financial exodus from the town by delivering a flagship store for Abergavenny."

Mr Johnsey said he was not yet in a position to reveal who would operate the superstore.

Robert Carew-Chaston, of Hutchings & Thomas, acts for Johnsey Estates and who is marketing the site. Welcoming the news he said, "This site is oven ready. It ticks all the boxes in terms of deliverability, accessibility and sustainability. It is innovative and will serve to regenerate this part of the town."

President of Abergavenny Chamber of Trade, Susi Cernoch gave the announcement a cautious welcome.

"The Chamber is obviously delighted to hear of any future investment that will drive local development forward, and it is excellent news that the planned stores would bring so many new jobs to the area.

"However, the Chamber's main role is to promote the viability of existing businesses in the town centre and therefore we are still keen to welcome the town centre anchor food store that retail studies have shown is needed here. When that development is complete, we anticipate that it will encourage other quality retailers to make an appearance in town and deliver the increase in footfall on the high street that our existing excellent town centre retailers desire and deserve."