'Monstrous' shopping centre will soon be replaced after appeal win

AN “ugly monstrosity” in the heart of a growing village will soon be demolished and replaced with new homes following a successful appeal.

- DANIEL MUMBY

The Crispin Shopping Centre has been a feature of Street since 1979, but has experienced several years of decline since the closure of the village’s Tesco Metro store.

Churchill Retirement Living put forward plans in January 2024 to demolish the shopping centre and build a retirement complex in its place, with 45 extra care apartments and 11 ‘retirement cottages’

Somerset Council's planning committee east (which handles major applications in the former Mendip area) voted against the proposals in July 2024, prompting the Hampshire-based developer to lodge an appeal.

Following a public inquiry in late-April and early-May, the Planning Inspectorate has now overturned the council's decision, meaning demolition work could be carried out before the end of the year. ‘The site is one of nine identified for delivering new housing within the council's revised Mendip Local Plan Part II, which went out to public consultation in 2024.

Under Churchill’s proposals, the existing buildings would be replaced with a three-storey, L-shaped block of apartments, with two blocks of cottages on the northern and eastern sides. Access will be from Leigh Road (including a pedestrian entrance near the library), while the current pedestrian access from High Street will be used primarily as a service entrance.