For years the powers that be have refused to listen to pleas from Newtonians to allow a Retail area on Aycliffe Business Park.
It has always been reserved for manufacturing although there has been some movement in recent years where factory shops, and service units have been allowed to open.
But the establishment of a full retail park has been resisted while in other areas, much smaller than Aycliffe, retail parks are flourishing.
One of the other reasons for not allowing a big retail area for large electrical, furniture, diy, garden centres etc is to protect existing town centres.
But this policy is flawed considering the development at West Auckland and Sedgefield.
Both these small towns have Retail Parks and Newtonians are having to travelling miles out of their own area to these parks to help them succeed.
Sedgefield have a small industrial estate yet they can squeeze in a large Sainsbury Supermarket with 350 car parking spaces.
The County Council in considering the application, concluded there was a weakness in applying rigid policies on industry only and recommended Sedgefield Industrial Estate be “de-allocated”
The County Council policies must be be challenged and changed for Aycliffe too, when a town of 5000 population gets a retail park and Aycliffe with 30,000 people and growing, is denied.
Aycliffe Business Park is also expanding and will become the largest in the north, bigger than Team Valley which has a Retail Park.
Our town centre is not big enough to accommodate large stores so what is the problem? Residents are taking the opportunity to express their views on the inadequacy of our town centre in the Neighbourhood Plan. The analysis will make good reading!