Shrewsbury vineyard project set to get the green light
A new multi-million pound winery and vineyard near Shrewsbury looks set to go ahead, despite objections from residents.
The scheme, earmarked for land near Hencote Farm, in Cross Hill, could see a winery and visitor centre built on the site along with a restaurant.
And bosses say the investment will reach between £4 million to £5 million and could see 25 full-time staff with a potential to increase that to 60 seasonally.
Councillors will discuss the plans at a meeting of Shropshire Council's central planning committee next week, but planning officers have recommended they give the project permission to go ahead.
Shropshire Council planning officer Tim Rogers said: "It is envisaged that the vineyard would become an established local and regional tourist visitor attraction in time.
"It will position itself as a high-end working vineyard open only to pre-booked guests on an exclusive use basis, offering events space for conferences, corporate training, weddings and other private functions.
"Overall visitor numbers are therefore expected to be relatively low, gradually building up to around 3,000 per annum three years after opening."
Within the new centre, there would be a processing building, a production building and a centre for visitors.
GVA Grimley Ltd said on behalf of applicant Andrew Stevens said it could yield up to 80,000 bottles of wine each year – making it "comparable scale with some of the UK's larger vineyards".
Mr Rogers said that visitors would be able to see the process of making wine from the vines to being bottled.
But despite the potential benefits, a total of 33 objections against the scheme were submitted to Shropshire Councilwith some concerned about the size of the development. Many feared the development could ruin the Shrewsbury countryside and would result in a loss of footpaths for walkers.
Others raised concerns that traffic to the site could lead to accidents.
Mr Rogers said: "The proposed development will deliver a number of economic benefits, including new private investment amounting to approximately £5 million.
"The construction phase will provide employment directly and indirectly, including spin-off benefits for local suppliers."
The plans will be discussed on Thursday.
