SUPERMARKET chain Lidl aims to open its new Chard store by the end of next year, it has been revealed.

A full planning application with more than 100 parking spaces has been handed to South Somerset District Council.

The retailer wants to demolish a series of buildings on the Brecknell Willis site, in Tapstone Road, before building the new 1,325 sq m supermarket.

A spokesman for the company said the store is expected to be open by the end of 2018 if the planning application is approved.

Chard & Ilminster News:

The plans have been submitted with a second application which will see them build a small car park exclusively for Brecknell Willis.

If approved, the new Lidl site will include 114 car parking spaces for customers, including six accessible parking bays and seven parent and child bays.

The application documents said: “At present it is unclear how many members of staff would be employed at the proposed Lidl. However, a Lidl store typically employs around 40 people.

“There is usually only two deliveries from an articulated vehicle to the store each day.

“Additional deliveries of bread and milk are usually made in smaller vehicles prior to the store opening.

“No designated cultural heritage features will be affected as a result of the proposal.

“Two buildings of early 20th century date within the site have been identified as holding some heritage value.

Chard & Ilminster News:

A former dwelling called The Elms, and a surviving component building of the early 20th century iron works along the north-western boundary of the site, have therefore been recommended for recording in advance of demolition, the application says.

The report said a pre-application meeting took place with officers at the council in May 2016 which has helped shape the proposed development and the content of the planning application. Meetings have also taken place with ward councillors ahead of the submission.

Lidl started trading in the UK in 1994 and currently has more than 630 stores nationwide.

Brecknell Willis began trading as Henry Brecknell and Sons in 1854, and the company has been operating from Chard since 1938. In 2015 they completed the construction of a new purpose-built factory. Since this was built, there are now elements of the site which are surplus to requirements of the company, in particular the land and buildings subject of new application.