THE St Sampson’s and Vale douzaines have questioned the proposed location of a supermarket in the new Leale’s yard redevelopment area. In the draft plans, it is situated near the Bridge and accessed via Nocq Road. The parishes said, however, that it would not gel with the other uses nearby, there would be major access problems and it would be better suited to the Lowlands industrial area.

‘We feel that traffic should be kept off Nocq Road, which has old buildings that are not suitable to volumes or weight of traffic, narrow roads and is already hazardous for pedestrians,’ said St Sampson’s douzaine representative Michelle Levrier.

‘A supermarket immediately behind the Bridge frontage would compete with specialist small shops planned for the area, to their detriment, and introduce traffic and parking congestion. A supermarket is a one-stop shop and should be treated as that.’

Island Development Committee forward planning officer Damon Hackley said that the committee believed the supermarket should be close to the back of the existing retail units so that they were used as one shopping experience.

‘We want to integrate it as far as possible. If the supermarket was moved further away, people might drive there and leave without going through the Bridge,’ he said.

Co-op chief executive Allan Smith added that he agreed with the IDC plans and it was usually to the detriment of the smaller users if it was separated.

The douzaine said that it wanted to have a vital role in the planning of the ‘northern town’ to ensure the heritage, spirit and ambience was kept.

It agreed with grouping housing and small retail use together, but said that it was concerned that the area would become upmarket and that indigenous people would be driven out if high-priced residential property were developed.

‘The area would include a mixture of housing to get a healthy blend of different social types and there would be plenty of floor spaces for community use,’ said Mr Hackley.

The douzaine was encouraged by plans for community use and urged the planners to consider as a priority the needs of young people.