PLANS to turn an “ugly monstrosity” into a retirement community have been unanimously refused by Somerset councillors.

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 to demolish the shopping centre and build a retirement complex in its place, with 45 extra care apartments and 11 ‘retirement cottages’.

But Somerset Council’s planning committee east voted against the proposals on July 11, citing a lack of parking, an unattractive design and possible damage to local heritage assets.

The site is one of nine identified for delivering new housing within the council’s revised Mendip Local Plan Part II, which is currently out for public consultation.

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.

A communal car park with 21 spaces will be provided in the centre of the site, with landscaping being put in place to separate the homes from the council-run Southside car park on Vestry Road.

Local resident Emma Harding spoke out against the plans when the council’s planning committee east met in Shepton Mallet on July 11.

She said: “I am one of the seven residential neighbours which will be lovingly overlooked by the new flats.

“We don’t have an issue with the site being developed – we have an issue with what’s being put there and how it may be put there.

“When you have demolition work close to our properties, we’re concerned about the damage that will be done to them by vibration.

“We already have issues with HGVs going up and down Vestry Road, which is causing cracking.”

Max Freed, a director of Deeley Freed (which owns the shopping centre), said the plans represented a great opportunity to regenerate the centre of Street.

He said: “We acquired the centre in the autumn of 2022, and at that point there were three remaining tenants and it was already dilapidated.

“In 2022, the residents of Street were surveyed by the parish council on their priorities for the area – and their highest priority was the redevelopment of the Crispin Centre.

“This is quite a complex and challenging brownfield site, which has been a blight on Street for many, many years.

“Churchill is a very experienced developer and operator of retirement living properties, who are willing in an extremely difficult economic environment to invest millions of pounds into Somerset and deliver much-needed homes for retirees in an incredibly sustainable brownfield location, next to a range of services and amenities.”

Churchill Retirement Living currently operates the Riverain Lodge care facility in Taunton town centre, and secured planning permission in early-April to deliver a similar development on the former police station site in Wells.

Councillor Peter Goater, vice-chairman of Street Parish Council, said: “The existing building is an ugly monstrosity which has been taken over by pigeons, rats and antisocial behaviour.

“Failure to approve this application will result in further decline of the existing landscape. Developers are not queuing up to develop this site, so it will remain a blot on the whole of Street.”

Councillor Liz Leyshon (who represents the Street division on Somerset Council) added: “Cranhill Road allows long-stay car parking and is popular with shopkeepers because people who use it walk through the whole High Street.

“There is still access through Southside car park out to the High Street. I support redevelopment of this site.

Ms Leyshon said that phosphate credits could be provided to offset the new homes by offsetting land at Yew Tree Farm near Wraxall – the same land which is being used to unlock 280 homes on the B3151 Somerton Road.

Despite this reassurance, numerous councillors expressed concerns about the design of the proposed development.

Councillor Barry Clarke (Mendip Central and East) said: “Replacing one eyesore with what I consider to be another, in a cramped situation, is not a reason for going ahead with it.

“They’re not things of beauty, these Churchill developments. The Wells police station development is absolutely disgraceful.”

Councillor Edric Hobbs (Mendip Hills) concurred: “They need to come back with something far more suitable. It’s not a case of going away of tweaking things.”

Councillor Rob Reed (Mendip South) added: “Quite clearly, this is over-development. If the developer wants to appeal, that is their right, but I don’t think they’ll get very far.”

The committee voted unanimously to refuse the plans after around an hour’s debate.

Churchill Retirement Living indicated in a written statement before the committee meeting that they would appeal any refusal of these plans.

Laura Coombes-Baker, associate director of Planning Issues (representing the developer) said: “It is extremely disappointing that it has come to this point, having engaged with Somerset Council and Street Parish Council through pre-application discussions, and when this is clearly a development that is highly sought and favoured by the local community.

“We would like to make it known now that the applicant will be appealing any forthcoming refusal and will be seeking a full public inquiry.”