Ludlow garden store plan will 'damage area'

The 9,000 sq ft retail unit, about half the size of the town's Tesco supermarket, is planned to be built on what is currently empty rough ground on Lower Galdeford, between the town's telephone exchange and the former South Shropshire Glass building.

But despite currently being a vacant, gravel-covered site between two industrial-style buildings, conservation experts have said the opportunity should be taken to improve the location as it is at "an important gateway into the historic core of Ludlow with key views coming in from the east".

The site, opposite Smithfield car park, is on a main route from the A49 bypass to Ludlow town centre. The plans, by lawnmower sellers Morris Bufton, are for a building finished with cedar wood panelling and roofed with steel.

A statement by estate agents McCartneys on behalf of Morris Bufton says the store will be "coordinated with the existing land".

It says: "The materials have be chosen to give a softer appearance to the building than just being a warehouse, attracting customers to it.

"The front in particular acts as a focal point to catch attention with two full height sections of glass.

"As well as being practical in terms of allowing natural light into the building, they also provide a very modern style for retail outlet, which contrasts with cedar wood timber panelling. The timber cladding is from natural sources, not man made and therefore will naturally blend in with the existing environment."

But a spokesman for Shropshire Council's conservation team said: "Compared to other street frontage buildings the proposal will be jarringly obtrusive.

"Its obtrusiveness will be accentuated by the fact that, perversely for a retail building, it provides no presence on the street frontage.

"The use of sheet metal for the roof would be damaging to the character of the area."

The team also took issue with plans to remove part of a traditional stone wall that borders the site.

Gina Wilding, town clerk, said Ludlow Town Council had also objected.

She said: "Members objected because the building is oversized for the plot, and the siting and mass of the development are inappropriate.

"The oversized building extends beyond the existing building line and significantly reduces parking on the site."

She said members agreed that though harm had been done to the historic stone wall in the past, and new proposal should seek to improve the site not further damage it.

Vivienne Parry, Shropshire councillor for Ludlow South, has called in the plans to be considered by the planning committee.