SHROPSHIRE Council planners may be set to recommend approval for a controversial scheme for a new out-of-town supermarket at Rocks Green.

The scheme has attracted strong opposition including from Ludlow Chamber of Trade who fear it will damage the town’s independent shops.

No decision is expected until next month (October) at the earliest but Andy Boddington, who represents Ludlow on Shropshire Council, believes the indications are that there will be a recommendation for approval from planning chiefs.

“It looks like council planners may recommend approval of the controversial proposal build a 25,000 sq ft supermarket and a petrol station on the outskirts of Ludlow,” said Andy Boddington.

“We won’t formally know what the planners think until early October. But on my reading of the runes from technical papers published they may well recommend the scheme should go ahead.”

Andy Boddington says an analysis prepared for the council suggests that a new supermarket would reduce town centre trade by 11 per cent.

“They also say the proposed store is ideally placed to help encourage housebuilding east of the bypass,” added Andy Boddington.

“Even if 11 per cent of trade is taken out of the town centre, council officers say the impact the store will have on the town centre will not be significantly damaging.”

But he is not convinced that this would not be hugely damaging because of the fragility of the Ludlow economy.

“Can independent traders take such a knock on their turnover?” added Andy Boddington.

“Will a loss of more than one in ten pounds be sustainable or will it lead to independents going under in favour of chains, charity shops and coffee houses? These are questions we need urgent answers to.”

Andy Boddington says that there is also a view that the impact would be much greater with one report suggested that between 25 and 30 per cent of spending would be taken out of the town centre.

Andy Boddington says that as a member of Shropshire Council’s planning committee he cannot commit himself at this stage one way or the other about the application.

But he says that he is aware that there are people living in and around the town who would support a new supermarket especially if it sells clothes.

However, others fear that it would do ‘irrevocable damage’ to trade in the town centre and also have a detrimental impact upon the character of the town.

This is the view of Ludlow Chamber of Commerce that has been urging people to oppose the scheme.

Tish Dockerty, secretary of the Ludlow Chamber of Commerce, told a recent public meeting that the town centre economy in Ludlow is ‘very fragile’ with many businesses struggling to make ends meet.

A final decision will be taken by the members of the planning committee which is not obliged to follow the recommendation of the planning officers.

However, a recommendation for approval would be seen as a blow by those opposed to the new supermarket.

Officers are hoping to bring the application to the meeting of the South Planning Committee on Tuesday, October 11.