Lidl has confirmed it still intends to open a store in Ponteland, despite withdrawing a second planning application for the site off Callerton Lane.
The discount supermarket chain pulled its latest proposals, which covered the demolition of buildings on the Lane Nurseries site. The move follows the withdrawal of plans for the store itself in April, which came after complaints from local residents.
Resident concerns and objections
More than 60 objections were submitted over the plans. Concerns raised included the potential for increased traffic congestion, a detrimental impact on existing shops in the town, and the safety of schoolchildren.
Callerton Lane is home to both Ponteland Community Primary School and Ponteland High School, as well as the town's leisure centre and fire station. The road is also one of the main entry and exit routes into the town centre and suffers from significant congestion at peak times.
Formal objections and next steps
Beyond residents' concerns, formal objections came from the Environment Agency, the Lead Local Flood Authority, Northumberland County Council's conservation team, Highways and ecological advisors. Those objections ranged from traffic impact to flood risk and drainage issues, as well as impacts on biodiversity, heritage assets and the character of the surrounding landscape.
Responding to the latest withdrawal, a spokeswoman for Lidl said: “We’d like to assure residents that we remain fully committed to delivering a new Lidl foodstore for Ponteland. A new planning application for the site will be prepared, and we will update the local community soon.”
At the time of the earlier withdrawal, Lidl said there were plans to resubmit plans once “necessary changes are made”. Ponteland has a population of more than 10,000 residents but just two larger supermarkets, Waitrose and Sainsbury's, both located minutes away from the proposed site of the Lidl store.
