Cross Hands retail park plans deferred after legal challenge

Conygar plans to develop the site previously earmarked for a Sainsbury's store

Plans to build a retail park which would create up to 260 full-time jobs in Carmarthenshire have been deferred.

Conygar wants to develop land at Cross Hands West which was previously earmarked for a Sainsbury's store.

The scheme is made up of 10 units, including a food store, a variety of shops, a pub and restaurant.

The application was recommended for approval, but a decision was delayed due to a late legal challenge on a nearby application.

Conygar said its development would create the equivalent of 260 full-time jobs and more than 100 jobs during the construction phase. It had hoped to start construction this year.

A separate planning application from Leekes was also deferred at Thursday's meeting.

The department store wanted permission to build a retail unit on the site of a nearby overflow car park, but Conygar challenged a report prepared for Leekes on alternative sites for development.

Carmarthenshire council's head of planning, Llinos Quelch, said the challenge required "further assessment" as it was based on "recent case law".