Shropshire Star

Carluccio's looking to open Shrewsbury town centre

An upmarket Italian restaurant could open in Shrewsbury next to the town's new £10.5 million Museum and Art Gallery, creating about 35 jobs.

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Restaurant – Antonio Carluccio

Restaurant chain Carluccio's has applied for planning permission to take over the Jane Dyas building in The Square, but concerns have been raised by Shrewsbury Town Council and Shrewsbury Town Centre Residents' Association.

It is intended that the site would have a canopy and outdoor seating area.

Documents submitted to Shropshire Council said the restaurant would create 35 jobs, replacing the one full-time worker and 11 part-time staff employed at Jane Dyas.

It is proposed the restaurant and delicatessen would open 8am to midnight Monday to Saturday and from 9am to 11.30am on Sundays.

But the residents' group said in a statement: "We are sad to lose a long-standing well-regarded retail shop in our town centre, but we welcome a Carluccio restaurant in its place.

"The high standard of this company is well-known, and we wish it success.

"We have, however, grave concerns regarding the proposal to place on the pavement outside 14 The Square five tables each with two chairs.

"In our view placing tables and chairs anywhere along the frontage of 14 The Square would be unsafe and expose people to hazard from passing vehicles.

"We seek a limit of the hours of use from 8am to 10pm. In the immediate neighbourhood of these premise even within just a few metres, there is a considerable number of residents living on upper floors, and in order to protect their amenity we ask that all furniture is removed by 10pm every day to ensure that street noise is not a nuisance to residents."

Shrewsbury Town Council said it supported "the principle of change of use to a restaurant", but added: "Members however have concerns for outside seating and the installation of a canopy, both of which have the potential to protrude into the highway and may restrict high-sided vehicles (particularly fire engines).

"Any agreement on seating would have to be strictly adhered to particularly since recent road improvements are promoting the area as a shared space."

No-one from Carluccio's was available for comment today.

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