A CONTROVERSIAL bid for a McDonald’s drive-thru in Bromsgrove was voted through in dramatic circumstances after a tense debate.
Bromsgrove District Council’s planning committee’s decision on whether or not to give outlet on the Stourbridge Road car park the green light was locked at four votes each at its meeting last week.
This meant that Coun Mick Marshall, who was only elected as the planning committee chair earlier that evening, gave the casting vote and, following a heated debate, decided to vote it through.
The plans are similar to the proposal submitted back in 2018.
The proposed restaurant is expected to employ more than 65 full-time and part-time staff, primarily from the local area. It could bring in up to 120 jobs in total with education, training and deliveries.
As well as the restaurant and drive-thru, car-parking and landscaping to the site, on the junction of Stourbridge Road and Birmingham Road, the company has also made changes to the access to the site, which differs from the previous application.
Back in 2018, there was backlash to the proposals with several concerns highlighted – these included increased traffic on the Stourbridge Road and the Birmingham Road and the fact the fast food outlet was ‘within walking distance of three schools attended by more than 1,600 pupils’.
John Gurner from the Bromsgrove Society, who spoke at the meeting, said: “At present, the information submitted does not sufficiently demonstrate that the development would avoid adverse effects on highway safety, nor does it show that a severe impact would not arise.”
Coun Bakul Kumar raised concerns about the traffic on Stourbridge Road, which, he claimed, is already chaotic.
However, council officers said that the development needs to have a severe impact on the highway network to refuse planning permission, which is a ‘high bar’ to meet.
Officers added: “It has to be that highway safety is totally undermined.
“The issue we have is that the government provides us with clear guidance that the existing conditions prove the base, so what we see outside today in terms of congestion and traffic flows is normal conditions for the network, according to the Department for Transport.
“We then have to factor in the development’s traffic growth, and forecasts on top of that, and then mitigate their impact.
“If we can do that, then that is classed as acceptable, not severe.”
An amendment to the initial recommendation to approve was submitted by Councillor James Clarke and accepted by members.
The proposal asked that, within six months of the first use of the development, and then after 18 months, a traffic monitoring report should be submitted to and approved by the local planning authority.
It adds that if the report identifies that the development has resulted in materially greater traffic impacts, a scheme of additional mitigation measures should be implemented and maintained.
