Experts say ‘Turn Centros Down’

Lancaster City Council’s own independent experts agree with local residents that information submitted by Centros Miller as part of their planning applications for the Canal Corridor North site does not add up. Independent consultants were appointed by Lancaster City Council to review the Transport and Retail Impact Assessments produced by Centros Miller in support of its recent planning applications. The two consultancies have now submitted their reports to the Lancaster City Council Planning Office.

MVA Consultancy has declared that Centros Miller’s Transport Assessment is flawed in a number of ways; fundamentally, it does not present a clear analysis of current traffic levels or “the future traffic volumes likely to be generated by the development”. This means that Centros Miller have failed to explain how many extra cars will come into Lancaster as a result of their plans, nor how the local transport system will cope with even more traffic.

White Young Green say that Centros Miller’s Retail Impact Assessment fails to demonstrate “clear quantitative need” for the development. They also state that Lancaster City Council have not been given sufficient information to make a reasoned decision on the Centros Miller proposals. Again, Centros Miller have failed to show that Lancaster can support a massive retail development without threatening local businesses.

Lancaster Chamber of Commerce have also submitted comments on Centros Miller's plans. They are particularly concerned about the “lack of proposals” submitted for the proposed pedestrian bridge which would link the scheme to the existing city centre. Without the bridge the Centros Miller scheme would be separate from and competing with the current city centre.

Cal Giles of It’s Our City comments “This is exactly what local people have been saying all along, and now it’s clear that the experts agree. Centros Miller’s plans will do nothing to reduce congestion on our roads and will create a ghost town in our existing city centre”.

Emilie Secker adds “Lancaster City Council has told us all along that if the plans don’t get the thumbs-up from the experts then they will show Centros Miller the door. We wonder what our councillors have to say now, in particular those in the Labour group who have previously championed these plans? It is obvious that the Council must turn Centros down”.