All quiet on issue of new supermarket

There was a small poster advising of a ‘consultation meeting’ with residents at the Woodloes Tavern. As you may remember, Punch Taverns was originally going to close the Sarah Siddons and build a Tesco Express. Now it proposes to build a Co-op where a grassed area exists.

This and any plans to build a supermarket on this location would be to the detriment of the area which is served by a good group of shops on Reardon Court, who would all suffer should the process continue.

Three weeks ago I contacted my local councillors by email, namely Councillors Ashford, Cross and Grainger to ask them what their view was and how they would stand if and when a planning application is submitted by Punch Taverns to build a Co-op.

To this date I have had no reply from any one of them. I even tried prompting for a reply this week and still none is forthcoming. I am quite confident the local community would be against the plans but I doubt that Punch Taverns is that bothered, and only interested in the profit it can make from the ground used.

We have elected these councillors to act in the best interest of the community they serve. The least they can do is respond when a member of the community asks a simple question.

So via your newspaper I would like to ask councillors Ashford, Cross and Grainger; Where do you stand and why has there been no response? - A Reeves, via email.