the No Mill Road Tesco Campaign

Print out our new Every Little Hurts poster, featuring pictures by John Volynchook of many of the independent traders on Mill Road who would stand to lose out in the face of Tesco’s power.

We understand that squatters have moved into the old Wilco store on Mill Road, the site where Tesco want to open an Express store. This is not connected in any way to the campaign to keep Tesco out of the site.

The No Mill Road Tesco Campaign is not involved in this action and we do not support it.

The fact that squatters could occupy the building is further, unfortunate evidence of Tesco’s failure to properly secure and maintain the back of the site, which has been allowed to deteriorate over recent months. Rubbish has been left to rot in the car park, posing a health risk to local residents, and windows at the back of the building have been left broken.

In the interests of local people, we hope that Tesco will now start behaving like responsible leaseholders and ensure that the back of the site is kept clean and secure.

On the broader question of the Wilco site, many residents of Romsey have become very concerned in recent months about the empty shops on Mill Road in the Romsey area, not just the Tesco site. As a result of this the No Mill Road Tesco campaign has taken the lead in an initiative to try to revitalise the area. Following recent discussions with local Councillors, the initial work and report on this will be made available shortly to other interest groups with the intention of setting up a working party involving local people and groups who want to improve the area - and give Mill Road the shops and facilities it wants and needs.

Press release, 5 May 2008

We understand that one of Tesco’s PR representatives is currently claiming that Tesco have decided to open a store on the old Wilco site on Mill Road without the extension that they have spent almost 2 years planning and arguing for. (Their proposed extension was refused by the council in March and is currently the subject of an appeal by Tesco to the Planning Inspectorate.)

We have been told that Tesco have drawn up new plans that now enable them to bypass the planning process and open without the proposed extension - despite the fact that they previously told the council planners that this would be impossible, as the documentation sent to the Planning Inspectorate confirms.

There are a few problems with Tesco’s claim. Even if they were able to operate a profitable store despite a reduction in the proposed shop floor of nearly 40% - which would be the amount of the existing store taken up by their “behind the scenes” stock storage, waste storage, office, staff facilities, bakery, etc – they would still face the following obstacles:

Continue reading ‘Press release: A smaller Tesco on Mill Road? Why it won’t happen’ »