We welcome the proposals for a McDonald’s restaurant, a Starbucks coffee shop and an electric vehicle (EV) charging station on the Bexhill Enterprise Park.
Stroud Holdings recently submitted a planning application for these developments on a site on the Park just south of the roundabout connecting Combe Valley Way with Mount View Street.
The proposed McDonald’s would be a single-storey restaurant operating 24 hours a day with 79 inside dining places, an outside eating area, a drive-through facility plus car parking and landscaping. The Starbucks would be a single-storey coffee shop with inside seating, a drive-through lane and parking.
Together, once operational, they would be expected to support around 140 local jobs.
The InstaVolt rapid charging hub would have nine bays for electric vehicles.
The proposed development would sit on the Bexhill Enterprise Park alongside our High Weald House offices, Glovers House – HQ to Park Holidays UK – 20 industrial units under development and other sites available for sale.
We have now submitted comments to Rother District Council on the planning application, giving full support for the way the scheme would complement the rest of the business park.
Our comments recognise a “much needed food and beverage provision withing the southern part of the enterprise park [without which] there are limited offerings within easy walking distance of the commercial development.”
We praised the proposed EV charging facilities as “a sustainability benefit to the Enterprise Park [making it] easily accessible by EVs including electric vans from London without the need for additional stops on route to charge.”
We also applaud the potential for local job creation, aligned with our own work to make the site available and accessible to support employment as well as the job creating purpose of the rest of the business park.
Andrew Frost, our Development Director, said:
“We see the proposed investment as highly positive and well-considered.
“It would complement the other developments in the area, including our own, to unlock economic growth and support local jobs, as well as benefiting people working on and visiting the Bexhill Enterprise Park and nearby residents.
“The EV charging would also be a great addition to our business park – boosting its sustainability credentials and bringing convenience to environmentally-conscious road users. We hope to see the scheme get planning approval and move forward.”