The freehold of the Bridge Inn (and the adjacent betting shop) has been purchased by TJ Morris Ltd, who trade as Home Bargains. They are proposing to build a large retail store (over 3 times the size of their existing unit in Belle Vale Shopping Centre) with a 100-space car park alongside. The planning application reference is 19F/1932.
One of the factors the City Council will have to take into account, in deciding whether or not to grant planning permission, is the impact the new store will have on existing shopping centres - notably Belle Vale. We have suggested that, by amalgamating some of the currently vacant units, it should be possible to meet Home Bargains' floorspace requirements within the Centre, and thus avoid jeopardising the viability of the existing building and some of the stores within it.