Plans to transform Cornhill Walk shopping centre site in Bury St Edmunds rejected by West Suffolk Council

The future of the Cornhill Walk shopping centre in Bury St Edmunds is still hanging in the balance after an application to transform it was refused this week.

The application, made by Peter Murphy, of Knightspur Homes, to build 48 flats over three floors, two shops and a 24-hour gym in its place went before West Suffolk Council’s development control committee on Wednesday.

It was the third time the plans had come before the council, having been deferred twice, but despite changes to the application, it was met with a further 13 objections.

A petition launched by the Well Street Association, which represents residents around the Cornhill Walk site, calling for their refusal was also submitted, having been signed by more than 600 people.

The scale of the proposed building, which includes an indoor courtyard, was presented as one of the largest causes for concern.

Cllr Carol Bull said: “The site needs something doing to it but I just think the scale and mass of this is too big."

Cllr Diane Hind, who proposed to refuse the plans, added: “I think it is too large. It’s overbearing, there’s going to be loss of amenity to residents and I have serious concerns about traffic movements. I don’t think it’s going to enhance the area at all.”

The prospect of having a 24-hour gym in the town centre as well as two large retail units – which would house a British Heart Foundation shop and The Entertainer toystore – also posed a problem.

Cllr Ann Williamson said: “We have to be mindful of people living there who are going to have possible movement 24 hours a day."

Town councillor Nicola Ianelli-Popham, who spoke against the plans on behalf of Bury St Edmunds Town Council, added that in the 30 years that the shopping centre was open, shops had struggled to survive on the site.

But other councillors defended the plans, stating that the applicant had tried to make the best of a bad situation and shouldn’t be blamed for a previous council’s mistake of approving the current building.

Cllr Ian Houlder said: “The mass and size of it is due to the footprint of the site and the developer cannot be held responsible.

“I think the façade that faces the town is a massive improvement on what is there. At least the architects have tried to brighten it up so it’s not so nasty to look at.”

Cllr Jason Crooks also spoke in favour of the Georgian design, suggesting that even if the developer changed the plans to exclude the top floor, the objections would not change.

After more than an hour’s discussion, the application was refused by 14 votes to two.

Applicant Peter Murphy said he would be appealing the decision, adding that the residents would ‘never be happy’ with any plan.

“They don’t just want a slight change, they want the whole thing knocked down and started again and we can’t afford to do that,” he said.

“We’ve made about two dozen changes to the application but still it’s going on and on and on. We are getting a bit tired of it – it’s the worst one I’ve ever done.”

He added: “The only thing we can do is appeal and try to clarify the issues.”

• For a full report on the meeting and the history of the Cornhill Walk site, see today's Bury Free Press.