Rustington concerns over retail park proposals

RUSTINGTON villagers and traders have given a cool reception to proposals for a new out-of-town retail park.

About 80 people packed a parish council meeting room on Monday night (February 4) for a presentation by Totem Commercial on its plans for a site west of Mill Lane and alongside the A259.

The developers claim their scheme, for five large retail units and a drive-through restaurant, would create up to 300 jobs, but many of those speaking at Monday night’s meeting feared the retail park would have an adverse effect on Rustington’s shopping centre.

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Mike Broomfield, of Owen Electrical, in The Street, said trade went down for his business and for a hardware shop in the village when the Focus DIY store opened years ago. “It closed recently, and the trade came back,” he said.

“We can only assume, if and when your units open, that our trade will go down again.”

Jonathan Best, of Blue Sky Planning, agents for Totem, replied: “We want to provide outlets that will complement existing stores, and bring trade into Rustington.”

He pointed out that the units would be occupied by companies selling household goods for which people were having to travel elsewhere at the moment, to places such as Chichester, Worthing and Shoreham.

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People are already going elsewhere to shop. I think that this will bring back trade.

“Most people are exercising their choice and are voting with their cars and going elsewhere.”

Villager Richard Smith asked what evidence there was to suggest there was a need for the units to be built.

Mr Best said retailers had expressed strong interest in setting up in the area, but there were no suitable locations in existing shopping centres that were large enough to house such stores.

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One of the stores is intended to be a food retailer, and a number of people questioned whether there was a need for another supermarket, with new stores for Morrisons and Sainsbury’s about to open, the recently completed Asda at Ferring and others in the area.

Mr Best said he was unable to name any of the businesses which had expressed interest in the units, for commercial reasons, but he described the food retailer as being at the quality end of the market.

Another villager expressed concern about the drive-through restaurant being open 24 hours a day, and Mr Best said negotiations were continuing with the potential tenant, but it was possible for Arun District Council to impose restrictions on the hours of opening if planning permission was granted for the scheme.

Major concerns were voiced about access into the retail park, which is proposed from Mill Lane and from the A259.

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Jools Chaffer, of the social enterprise dizzy, said: “There’s going to be a massive build-up of traffic and it will be a complete snarl-up.”

Speaking after the meeting, Rustington Parish Council chairman Andy Cooper said: “We are concerned. The highway issues throw up a lot of questions. We will be watching what goes on with their future plans.

“It’s also a concern for village traders, and rightly so.”

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