New Burger Takeaway For Town Looks Ready To Go

Planners look set to approve a new drive-thru MacDonald's in thecentre of Yate.

Charterhouse, which owns the Four Seasons shopping centre, wantsto build it at the back of the former Safeway store in West Walk.

The restaurant is part of a major remodelling scheme to createmore facilities for teenagers and a key element of the CommunityVision for the town centre. The rest of the store will be taken overby two other retail units.

The Swan pub in the shopping centre was closed in May as part ofthe town centre revamp, but no decision to demolish it or reopen asa restaurant have been announced yet.

Yate Town Council said most people in the town were in favour ofthe new drive-thru but it wanted assurances that public art on one ofthe walls created by local schools would be preserved.

It said the town council's strategy was "to balance the needs ofhe centre with the desire to have a town centre which provides arange of community facilities".

Only three residents have written to South Gloucestershire Councilobjecting to the scheme on a number of grounds.

They fear it will increase noise levels, add extra traffic andcause groups of youths to gather in the area.

Planning official Donna Whinham said: "Given its location withinthe town centre it would actively encourage a high number of visitorsthroughout the day.

"The layout of the drivethru has been amended to ensure that nocar parking spaces are lost. There is a need to protect localresidents from noise and disturbance from visitors and vehicles laterin the evening." She said conditions on the planning permission wouldlimit opening hours at night to 11pm.

Charterhouse has said the artwork and the town's coat of armswould be retained.

Ms Whinham will urge members of the council's planning committeeto back the application at their meeting on Thursday.