Locals object to fresh warehouse plans

A CONTROVERSIAL plan for a large warehouse and multi-storey car park in the heart of Shaw has attracted more than 150 objections from near-by residents.

The application for the Lilac Mill on Beal Lane was refused at a planning committee meeting in March.

However, applicants Fulfilment Logistics have returned with a revised scheme.

The re-submitted plans for a three-storey car park and high bay warehouse will go before the planning committee again on Wednesday.

This time it includes an visual impact assessment and environmental statement, which assesses various impacts of the proposed development and seeks to clarify the issues resulting in refusal of the previous application.

The plan has resulted in numerous objections from local residents who state the warehouse is too tall and disproportionate to existing buildings, will block out light at neighbouring properties during the day while flooding them with artificial light throughout the night. They also claim that car park access will cause traffic problems.

Designs for a 173ft-high (53 metres) warehouse, that would have been only eight metres lower than Oldham Civic Centre and would have towered over Shaw, have been scrapped but a new application has been submitted that still reaches a maximum height of 127 ft (39 metres).

The mail order firm says it has outgrown the site and needs to expand to secure the jobs of the 1,000-strong workforce.

A petition signed by more than 500 employees of JD Williams support the new plans on the grounds that it will create more job opportunities and encourage investment in the area that has already witnessed enough industrial decline.