Megashed rejected (From Basingstoke Gazette)

Megashed rejected

7:27am Tuesday 2nd September 2008 in

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AFTER a meeting lasting more than four and a half hours members of Test Valley Borough Council's northern area planning committee have rejected the controversial plans for Andover Airfield.

The plans, which include proposals for a giant Tesco megashed, were rejected by 13 votes to 11.

Professional planning officers had recommended that the plan be approved subject to conditions.

Since councillors overturned this view the matter will now be sent to a specialist planning control committee which will consider the ramifications of the vote.

The date for this meeting has yet to be agreed but the council has promised it will take place in Andover.

Hundreds of anti-megashed protesters left the meeting happy with the result but the vote went against the views of leader Ian Carr and other members of the council's cabinet.

Cllr Carr said: "We have made a serious mistake."

But others were more than happy to agree the objections on the grounds of noise and its massive size.

Cllr Jim Neal who proposed the application be rejected said: "The building is big enough to service six jumbo jets but there's nowhere for them to land."