Oswestry21

We now understand that Shropshire Council have asked that all four applications be called in, that is - heard together by a planning inspector, probably at a public inquiry. Schedule and dates to be announced.

The early dawns, summer’s fleeting arrival, the scent of bluebells and lilac in the air may all help to remind us that this year’s long winter may be over.  In the distance the drums of the developers can still be heard by those who listen for them.  A flurry of activity over the past two weeks from the four developers is our signal that life returns to the campaign.  So what the News Desk asked itself last night was, does OS21 make a difference?

Reading through pages of new submissions you will not see reference to OS21 but you will, if you have as we have, become students of the planning process see the effects OS21 has had on the debate.

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D day tomorrow. Decision or Deferral? After two years of debate since the Town Council/OCA Smithfield shambles first came to light, during which Oswestry has become encircled by Tesco in every neighbouring town,  the Strategic Planning Committee meets at the Lion Quays tomorrow afternoon to decide whether Oswestry is to become another clone town/ghost town and become one of the last to clamber aboard the sinking ship of supermarket over-provision, or whether it can have some self belief in its own economy and community and offer the rare opportunity to inhabitants and visitors alike to experience what it is to be a market town.

All the current applications were visualised in a very different economic climate to that which we are now experiencing. All are based on a need argument set out by Nathaniel Lichfield Partners which have been steadily and incrementally reduced since 2007 to a shadow of their initial findings. Petrol costs are rising, food miles and local food issues are now common components of newspaper articles and news items. And realisation that true leakage is the leakage from the local economy created by supermarkets is now common knowledge.

All the applications facing the Strategic Planning Committee are either far too large or too far out of town, or both. All will affect the town, independent traders, the community, and drain the local economy. Until real need in the form of sensible creation of employment land for real long term and decently paid jobs and the subsequent building of housing in the locality is in place, there is no need for further supermarket presence in a small market town that already has Sainsburys, ALDI, Morrisons, M & S; S, Iceland, and the various other outlets that provide food retail that have opened recently.

Here’s to a sane and pragmatic decision to either refuse all four applications or to defer a decision until such time as scale is appropriate to need. The desperation evidenced by developers in recent days says far more about their need to make the bucks than it does about any consideration for the town’s need to continue as an economic community.

Twist or bust.

Headlines such as “Tesco enjoy best Christmas in three years” and “Cut price ASDA slices through the recession” are doubtless heartening to shareholders, but behind the figures lies a more depressing story for shoppers.

“Supermarket giants Tesco and Asda dramatically increased prices on key items in the runup to Christmas in what an independent expert has called “a systematic, cynical and aggressive attempt to exploit demand”, a Guardian investigation can reveal. Batteries, lightbulbs, medicines, Christmas drinks and must-have children’s toys were among essentials whose prices were increased.

Both companies ran marketing campaigns before Christmas and at New Year boasting of thousands of price cuts but many consumers will have been unaware that they were also raising thousands of prices in the same period”. (Systematic, cynical, aggressive’: expert verdict on Tesco & Asda prices. Guardian, Feb. 12th 2010)

While supermarkets are keen to trumpet the price falls in 1000’s of selected Christmas “essentials” The Guardian reports on a third party retail survey (”We used data compiled by third party analysts from the Asda and Tesco online stores to show how many price rises were imposed between December 9 and December 22″) of prices in Tesco and ASDA which reveal 1000’s of price rises between the 9th and 22nd December ‘09. While the price falls hyped by supermarkets often fall into the bracket of a matter of pence, the price rises in the case of ASDA range from 455.5% to a fraction of a percentage over a range of 2059 items, and in the case of Tesco from 158% to a fraction of a percentage over a range of 1578 items.

In the article: “How supermarkets can cut ‘thousands of prices’ but your bills may go up” by Felicity Lawrence, Guardian, Friday 12th Feb 2010, Professor of Retailing Paul Dobson of Loughborough University, who has been conducting a five year study of prices at the big 4 -Tesco, Sainsbury’s, ASDA & Morrisons said: “Retailers are happy to tell us about their price cuts but they forget to tell us about the price rises. We keep hearing about a price war but it’s the most curious price war I’ve ever heard of, where you can’t detect an overall drop in price levels or a fall in profits.”As anyone knows, you don’t make money by being generous. And if you do by appearing to be so, then it’s achieved by sleight of hand.

Interesting news coming in of a new phone survey being carried out in Oswestry. Very specific about the current situation - do you think Oswestry needs a new supermarket - do we need a cinema - do we need more restaurants -  do we need a bigger choice of food - would the town benefit from a cinema - if so, would it be better as a 5-screen, or single screen? - of the sites, which do you prefer - do you think a central car park site would cause more traffic congestion.

If you take such a call, perhaps you would like to get in touch at the contact on the tab above. Desperate measures as the 18th March looms!

With the imminent date for some kind of decision on the Oswestry supermarket situation looming on the horizon - March 18th - the coalition of OS21, Civic Society, CPRE and the Chamber of Trade are orchestrating a poster campaign around the town, and also a leaflet drop by Royal Mail which will be delivered to all households in the SY11-1 and 2 postal districts.

The posters will raise awareness of the campaign, and the leaflets will provide information about the consequences for the town centre and it’s economy if Oswestry were to have another supermarket and part of it will form an addressed objection letter that will require and address and a signature - and a stamp. 7,500 leaflets will be delivered.

The pace is hotting up as March 18th approaches, but it’s likely that any decision will lead to a long period of appeals and possible judicial review, so this looks likely to be one battle in a long war. The consequences of excess supermarket development are visible in town centres everywhere, and for anyone who doubts it, they might like to take the short trip to Wrexham and walk down the unfortunately named Hope Street now Eagles Meadow has landed.

We will also put the objection letter on this site this week under a tab on the bar above which will be downloadable and printable.

It’s a crossroads for this town - it can be one of the few towns to not opt for supermarket retail supremacy, and forge a workable and viable 21st century identity for itself, or one of the last to settle for selling it’s retail economy down the river and becoming a town centre of boarded shop fronts. Address and sign your objection letter, talk about the issue with friends and family and ask them to do the same.

For every £1 spend on food in supermarkets, just 8p goes to the farmers

Five large retail chains account for 80% of food sold in the UK

Around 2000 independent convenience stores disappear every year, more than 5 a day

Research shows that 50% of turnover from local retailers is returned to the local economy. Large retailers may return as little as 5% to the local economy

(Countryside Alliance)

Well, while the Statutory Regulatory Committee deliberate, it all has the sense of the lull before the storm. Some news to report:

J Ross have finally got their statutory assessments, including traffic, in their application -

http://planning1.shropshire.gov.uk/WAM/showCaseFile.do?appType=planning&appNumber=09/02082/FUL  More to come in due course.

With regard to the Smithfield -

http://planning1.shropshire.gov.uk/WAM/showCaseFile.do?appType=planning&appNumber=OS/08/15788/OUT  

The green grocer in Ellesmere is already deciding to close following the opening of Tesco there. Tenants of shop units at the Smithfield were, apparently, given notice to quit in July/August.

Burbidges -

http://planning1.shropshire.gov.uk/WAM/showCaseFile.do?appType=planning&appNumber=OS/09/15869/OUT  

have bought Canal Wood Industrial Estate, adjacent to their Chirk premises “because of the rental income it produces”.

J T Hughes and Guttercrest -

http://planning1.shropshire.gov.uk/WAM/showCaseFile.do?appType=planning&appNumber=OS/09/15868/OUT characteristically quiet and awaiting, like the rest of us, the deliberation of the Strategic Regulatory Committee.

The (again) downwardly revised Nathaniel Lichfield figures for current retail need in Oswestry stand at around 20,000 sq, ft. gross. These figures have been revised partly due to the economic climate, and additionally with regard to the new retail outlets in Wrexham, Ruabon, Welshpool and Ellesmere locally, and Morrisons, M & S and new budget shops retailing food and comparison goods in Oswestry. The four current applications are between approx. 45,000 sq. ft. and 70,000 sq. ft.

Meanwhile life in town goes on as normal - rowdy scenes in the council chamber at a public meeting about the Middleton Road traffic lights. The fact that there have been no injury accidents in the last 5 years, and 6 in the previous 5 years (no more than if there had been traffic lights according to Martin Allard, Head of Strategic Highways and Traffic, Shropshire Council), did not avert apoplexy from certain councillors vowing to find Town Council funding for the seemingly unnecessary traffic lights before a review of town traffic flow as a result of any of the current supermarket applications being granted permission.

And murmurings of speculation about the Powis Hall market makeover coming to nought as a result of lack of clarification as to who’s task it is to seek additional funding, and what seems to be a lack of alacrity and initiative to seize the opportunity that was presented.

So, signing off for the moment. Usual fiver in a brown envelope handed over in the bandstand in Cae Glas to anyone with any relevant news or information. No names, no pack drill.

Don’t forget the Jo Lo Co in the Memorial Hall on Tuesday.