A HIGHBRIDGE company has submitted plans to turn unoccupied land it says has been "blighted by fly-tipping" into a self-storage site with up to 150 parking spaces.
Speedy Storage Limited is seeking full planning permission to change the use of the land north of Market Street and near the railway to class B8 for storage and distribution.
This will allow the company to use the approximately 6,920 square metres (1.71 acres) plot of land “for the siting of temporary storage containers for self-storage, vehicular and associated parking, and all other open storage”.
Speedy Storage Limited has owned the brownfield site since December 1, 2021.
In its design and access statement, the company said the proposed wheelchair-accessible site “would be run in tandem with the applicant’s existing affiliated self-storage business Speedy Self Storage” at Premier Business Park, Huntspill Road.
The company says its existing site is “fully occupied with a lengthy waiting list of local customers seeking self-storage space”, leading to its plans to expand to “offer easy and flexible storage to individuals and businesses.”
The applicant said: “It is adjacent to a small office building, retail store (Proper Job), telecommunications mast, housing development, public playing fields, and sits alongside approximately 250 metres of rail track and ancillary land maintained by Network Rail.”
The land has previously been used as a car park, a store building, and a stockholding and distribution depot.
The applicant said: “The site is presently unoccupied and has been for many years, and regretfully has recently been blighted by fly-tipping (prior to the applicant’s ownership).
“The applicant is seeking to invest and make improvements to the site with the siting of temporary self-storage containers and establishment of open storage and parking spaces, the securing of boundaries to discourage fly-tipping and potential trespass onto the railway, the re-laying of road surfaces, and the re-establishment of utilities at the site.
“These improvements will remove what is presently wasteland sat within Highbridge’s District Centre and transform it into a modern and secure self-storage facility for those living and working within the local and surrounding areas.”
Read more: Redevelopment of land for three commercial units among latest applications
It also says the “improvements will sit discretely within the landscape which presently consists of level gravel hardstanding, broken tarmac and unmaintained bramble areas”.
Speedy Storage Limited say it would expect only a “minimal increase in associated traffic” on Market Street, “a bustling street and well-maintained public road".
In its application form, the company has proposed having two full-time and two part-time employees at the site if its plans go ahead.
The application can be viewed on Sedgemoor District Council’s planning portal (application number 11/22/00020).
The consultation period began on March 21 and comments will be accepted until April 14.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here