Decision Date For Martlets Shopping Centre Delayed Again As NewRiver Tweak Their Application

Burgess Hill residents are going to have to wait even longer for a decision on NewRiver Reit's proposals for the Martlets Shopping Centre after amended plans were submitted to Mid Sussex District Council.



The revised plans from Summer 2019 saw the inclusion of Hollywood Bowl and a much larger residential scheme which includes an 11-storey apartment block.

It was expected for the scheme to be ruled on by the District Planning Committee back in November 2019, but the months came and went and the scheme remained absent from the agenda.

NewRiver Reit submitted some tweaks to their plan last week - which is required to go through yet another stage of public consultation and to be examined by various statutory consultees before it finally reaches the planning committee.

It's looking like September 2020 will be the earliest we may finally have a decision.



What's In The Tweaked Plans?

A slight redesign of the residential block has enabled one extra apartment to be added, taking the total from 171 to 172.

'Elevational Improvements' for the hotel and cinema buildings - following input from MSDC's Urban Designer.

Several amendments made to the site layout to address traffic flow and highways layout.

Residential parking spaces have increased from 72 to 75.

Cycle parking spaces have been increased from 192 to 206.

The inclusion of 4 electric vehicle charging points.

Other Documents Uploaded To The Planning Portal

TSP - Traffic Survey Partners were hired to conduct a Street Occupancy Survey on Thursday 12th & Saturday 14th March 2020 at 11am, noon and 1pm. This involved monitoring the roads in and around the town centre.

On April 22nd, WSP Indigo responded to the WSCC Highways consultation on behalf of NewRiver. This addressed on-street parking capacity, relocation of bus stops and use of real-time bus information technology. There are also proposals to enhance the entrance to Waitrose car park for pedestrians and cyclists. A right-hand turn from Station Road into Waitrose car park is also being put on the table for WSCC Highways to consider in the future.

The report addresses the McDonald's situation, stating that either the restaurant find a way to serve drive-thru customers quicker, or a longer queuing system be introduced to take cars off the highway. It's pointed out that this is out of the control of NewRiver.

The applicant is looking to install some cycle hubs in the town centre and even looking to run a car club. It's clear from the documentation that WSCC and MSDC have been concerned with the lack of car parking being provided in the development so are looking for the applicant can mitigate this issue.

Referring to their on-street parking survey, the applicant believes there is lots of spare capacity to meet increased demand caused by extra visitors to the town and the residential dwellings. Their calculations indicate that at peak time with the new development in place, 76% of on-street spaces will be occupied.



Burgess Hill resident, Mr Clifford Sharp, wrote to MSDC about the application, stating:

See The Detailed Plans
The full documentation for the application is available on the MSDC Planning Portal.
Look up planning number DM/19/3331 .

The wait continues....

Got an opinion on this story? Leave a comment below.....
What do you think the application will come before the planning committee by the end of Autumn 2020?