Bristol MP's want reassurances from Sainsburys

Bristol MPs have united to call for reassurances from Sainsbury’s that it will go ahead with its plans to build a supermarket on the Memorial Stadium in Horfield. MPs Charlotte Leslie, Stephen Williams, Kerry McCarthy and Dawn Primarolo have written an open letter to the supermarket group’s chief executive, Justin King. They say that the company has recently pulled out of other proposed stores – but say a decision to do the same in Horfield would be “catastrophic”.

In the letter they say:
“We note from the financial press that your company has announced the shelving of a number of proposed developments. We sincerely hope that this does not affect the Memorial Stadium redevelopment, as the consequences could be catastrophic for Bristol and, it goes without saying, the reputation of Sainsbury’s in the South West.”

They point out that several vital projects and opportunities are hinging on the sale of Bristol Rovers’ current home, including the new stadium at the University of the West of England, housing and the business case for the metro railway system, which would have stations near the new stadium, not to mention hundreds of jobs at both the new stadium site and the new supermarket.

The MPs tell Mr King:
“We welcome the fact that after a long period of expensive legal proceedings, the sale of the Memorial Stadium site to your company now triggers extremely exciting, and indeed game-changing, developments for the City of Bristol. On conclusion of this deal, we look forward to recognising Sainsbury's as a valued partner in the region, unlocking over £200 million of vital investment in Bristol and South Gloucestershire. Bristol is in desperate need of an arena fit for the 21st century. Such a ground would not only benefit Bristol Rovers FC, but also the university and wider business community across the South West. The plans include provision for a 1,000 seat conference centre which will raise the profile of Bristol as a cultural and commercial hub for the region. Other benefits the stadium will bring include the creation of many long-term job opportunities for people working in and around the stadium, as well as providing a boost for local suppliers and construction firms during the building phase. This development also unleashes land for much-needed housing, and is a very significant boost for the business case for enhanced local railway, which impacts all of our constituencies. Given the congestion in the area that is likely with other additional projected developments, were this rail enhancement and re-opening of old passenger line and stations not to take place, the Sainsbury's and stadium package also helps prevent traffic gridlock at Junction 17 of the M5 from becoming a 'tourniquet' to the rest of the South West. Because of the obvious importance of these plans to our city, we write not only to welcome this development, but, given the delay already suffered, urge you to conclude any last remaining elements of this agreement with Bristol Rovers FC as soon as possible. As we are sure you will understand, this will not only provide peace of mind for the football club at what is a very emotional time in the club’s history, but will also do likewise for the university, local councils and the broader region and business community across the South West. The city needs this project and we need it to begin soon with no more delays and I look forward to hearing Mr King’s response.”

Sainsbury’s was unable to comment on the points made in the MPs’ letter last night.

In October last year the company axed plans for a new supermarket in Stewarton, in Ayrshire, Scotland.
In March Sainsbury's pulled the plug on a planned store in Canterbury.
In April the company pulled out of a £70 million supermarket scheme in Tonbridge, Kent.
In May it cancelled plans for another store in Wadebridge, Cornwall, after work had already started on the site.

http://www.bristolpost.co.uk/Bristo...e-won-t-pull/story-21310221-detail/story.html

 

It is a concern - even more so if the MPs think they need to get involved...

 

Good to see that all the MPs are united on this, pity that Stephen Williams, Kerry McCarthy and Dawn Primarolo sat on the fence during the TRASH fiasco.
I personally wrote to Stephen Williams at the time to support Charlotte but just received a standard "we get lots of requests reply"

 

Perhaps Miss Primarola feels that she took take a more appropriate view now that she is Dame Primarola

 

Update: Sainsburys have replied! Taken from the Post....


SAINSBURY'S has reiterated its commitment to Bristol – although the supermarket has stopped short of giving a concrete commitment to its planned store on the site of the Memorial Stadium in Horfield. The fortunes of Bristol Rovers are tied up with the supermarket giant's plans, which are crucial to the funding of a new stadium for the club.

In one of his final acts as Sainsbury's chief executive, Justin King – whose last day was yesterday – wrote to Bristol North West MP Charlotte Leslie who, with other city MPs last week called on the company to confirm it was going ahead with the project. Concerns were raised that the deal might collapse after Sainsbury's pulled out of a number of other store projects elsewhere in the UK. In his letter, seen by the Bristol Post, he writes:

"We are committed to Bristol and the wider city region, and have been ever since we opened our first store in the city almost 45 years ago. We directly employ over 800 people through our 10 Bristol stores and, of course, many more through our Emerson's Green Distribution Centre and other stores in the City region."

Mr King blamed the delays to the project on a series of "legal challenges". Despite Bristol City Council rubber-stamping Sainsbury's planning application in January 2013, the legal challenges "have taken more than 18 months to conclude, a particularly long wait, even for an application of this complexity", he says. The outgoing boss insists that the retailer has "continued our dialogue with Bristol Rovers" and that it is monitoring the "situation closely". The letter continues:

"I am aware of the support locally for the redevelopment and the additional investment in the region that this potentially unlocks. However, I am sure you will appreciate we cannot discuss the progress or status of our commercially confidential discussion with Bristol Rovers or UWE until they are concluded. To do so would place us in breach of our contractual commitments to the other parties. We understand the imperative to get this scheme moving and once we are in a position commercially and contractually to discuss the next steps we will do so; but unfortunately it is not possible for us to respond in more detail at the moment."

Ms Leslie described the letter as "encouraging", adding:

"It is really good to hear that Sainsbury's is still committed to Bristol and they seem to have a deep understanding of how much the deal means to the city in terms of local people, infrastructure and the economy."

http://www.bristolpost.co.uk/Sainsbury-confirms-commitment-Bristol/story-21443839-detail/story.html