News

DOVER ASDA DEVELOPMENT READY IN 18 MONTHS

Plans to build an Asda store,  retail units, a hotel,  restaurants, flats and a visitors' centre have been submitted.

Asda and Bond City who placed the joint planning application want to build o­n the St James's site in Dover.

The proposals will transform the St James's site in Dover o­n the southern edge of the town centre, just inland from the sea front and docks.

The entire site will be redeveloped with the removal of the existing vacant high rise office block, hotel, bus depot and multi- storey car park making way for a mix of modern retail, hotel and residential facilities.

Dover's first Asda store will act as an anchor to the scheme. The rest of the site will comprise 6 other retail units, a 100 bed hotel, 3 restaurants, 39 flats and a visitors' centre.

The proposals are in line with Dover District Council's development brief for the site and were welcomed by local people during a community consultation process carried out by Bond City last Autumn. A staggering 81% of those people who visited the public exhibition and expressed an opinion strongly supported the individual plans.

Asda's Head of Property Communications, Naomi Duggan said: 'We are delighted that our first store in Dover will be part of such an imaginative mixed use scheme. This development will completely regenerate this area of Dover, providing an attractive gateway into the town as well as creating hundreds of new local jobs. Our new 45,000 sq ft net store will offer an attractive range of food and non food goods, and bring real choice and competition to the area.

'The proposals have been developed in line with the Council's development brief, so we hope that the scheme will pass through the planning process as quickly as possible. If things go well, the new store could be up and running at the beginning of 2007.'

Cllr Paul Watkins, Leader of Dover District Council, said: 'We are delighted at this very significant step. The redevelopment of the St James's area is the first major step in the Regeneration Strategy for Dover identified in the Dover Pride project. The application will, of course be considered in the normal way in keeping with all standard procedures. However, this is great news for the district and shows that the town and the area have the potential to move forward to a new phase of economic growth.'