Helensburgh ghost town fears

Published 2 Feb 2012 12:00

HELENSBURGH will become a ghost town if Waitrose is given the go-ahead to build a supermarket and petrol station on the "out of town" Colgrain site, it is feared.

A group of independent retailers in the Burgh say Helensburgh would go the same way as Dumbarton, Paisley and other towns where supermarkets and new shopping centres have led to long-established shops having to close as trade is drawn away.

Their comments come after Argyll and Bute Council revealed that if new Helensburgh master plans are approved today (Thursday), the major reason for the refusal of Waitrose will be removed.

In a statement to the Advertiser this week, the newly formed Helensburgh Retailers Alliance said: "The go-ahead for Waitrose at the Colgrain site would eventually rip the heart out of the town centre."

Following fears first expressed last Autumn, retailers have now launched a major "Save our Town" campaign following news that the council's amended pierhead masterplan rules out a major supermarket development on what is seen as a prime waterfront location.

This has cast a huge question mark over Sainsbury's plan to buy the pier site from the council and redevelop it with a major store as the central feature.

Although Sainsbury's has not indicated it is abandoning its plans for Helensburgh, it means the focus has now switched to Waitrose, whose application for a major foodstore and filling station at Colgrain will be considered by the council on February 21.

The major obstacle leading planning officers to recommend refusing Waitrose was that of the sequential test, which states that the suitable site closest to a town centre must first be used for retail.

If the council's amended master plans - which propose no large supermarket on the pierhead - are approved, that obstacle is no longer there.

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This article appeared in Helensburgh Advertiser 02 Feb 12

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