A new supermarket and filling station could be built on the site of the former Summerhill Academy in Aberdeen.

Members of the City Council's Development Management Sub-Committee are to consider the application for Morrisons, when they meet in the Town House on Thursday [19 April].

Planning officers have recommended that councillors approve the application for the site on the corner of Stronsay Drive and Lang Stracht., which was last used as a school 22 years ago and latterly as education and administration offices with community facilities.

The application is for a new supermarket with a floorspace of 6,331 square metres, with 468 parking spaces and a filling station with 12 fuel pumps and an enclosed car wash. Access would be from the Lang Stracht.


In her report to the committee, head of planning and sustainable development Dr Margaret Bochel states: "A retail use of this site would be complementary to the adjacent housing area.

"The applicant has demonstrated that there is sufficient expenditure within the city to support another store in this location and the recent approval of the Aberdeen Local Development Plan has made provision for substantial new residential development west of the city, in eg Countesswells, Kingswells, Greenferns and Maidencraig, which will be within the market area of this store.

"A main benefit of having modern retail facilities within a large community which is not currently provided with such facilities, particularly with regard to weekly food shopping needs, is that there will be major gains in terms of overall sustainability and traffic generation with customers shopping locally to meet these needs rather than having to depend on private cars to shop at what are to them, more remote locations as at present."

(GK)