A new twist has surfaced in the flooding wrangle which has delayed Aldi’s long-running effort to build a store at Winnersh.
Wokingham Borough Council’s planning committee meets for an extraordinary meeting on Wednesday (April 30) to discuss the planning application for a third time.
The council voted to approve the plan for the store in Gazelle Close in December 2023 but the Government called the plan in over drainage and flooding issues and an inquiry was planned.
But before it could be held, the Environment Agency, which had not previously objected, changed its position, prompting the WBC to hold another meeting in June 2024 at which councillors voted for refusal.
Now with the inquiry just weeks away, the council is to discuss changes to the proposed drainage system, put forward by Aldi in a bid to alleviate concerns.
Officers have recommended approval for the revised scheme, although the final decision will be made by the Secretary of State after the public inquiry which begins on May 13.
The officers’ report ahead of Wednesday’s meeting states: “The scheme now demonstrates that there will be no increase in flood risk elsewhere.
“On this basis, the council’s independent drainage consultant and officers agree that the council’s previous basis for objecting to the scheme have fallen away.
“Accordingly, provided that the planning committee appropriately authorises the council’s formal change of position, the council intends not to present substantive evidence on drainage or flood risk matters at the inquiry and officers are now working with the applicant to agree a Statement of Common Ground which covers such matters.”
The site already has planning permission for a car showroom.
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