Case Studies
Retail: Wombourne
Wombourne
Indigo were instructed by Mercian Developments Ltd to achieve full planning permission for a foodstore in Wombourne, near Wolverhampton. It was a challenging proposal as the site was out of centre, and was historically in employment use. The site had been vacant for approximately 15 years, mainly due to the presence of overhead cables which prevented development across half of the site. Indigo worked closely with surveyors to demonstrate that there was no commercial or industrial interest in the site. Transport was also a key issue, as the site was out of centre and on a main road. Indigo liaised with the transport consultants to ensure that all transport issues were dealt with, and proposed a shuttle bus to allow local residents to access the proposed foodstore as the bus service was infrequent. In terms of the retail impact on the village, Indigo prepared a retail statement, which assessed the scale, impact, accessibility, need, and considered any sequentially preferable sites.
Indigo met with key stakeholders, attended a local public exhibition, and liaised closely with the Local Authority prior to submitting the planning application. Planning permission was granted for the new foodstore in August 2008.
