An independent forecourt retailer in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, has had their application for planning permission refused by the local council despite work on site already having commenced.
Miles Retail had sought permission from Buckinghamshire Council to extend the shop at the Desborough Park Road Service Station, add new three pumps and above-ground offset tank fills to the forecourt, and enlarge the surface area of the site’s canopy roof while raising it by 1.3m.
The operator submitted a part-retrospective planning application to the council, and when a case officer visited the site they discovered new pumps and offset fills had already been added, while bollards, barriers and a new interceptor had been installed.
Despite these works having been completed, Buckinghamshire Council refused the entire planning application, ruling that the development would require six further parking spaces to be added to the site to cope with customers visiting the expanded shop. The authority advised that the lack of space would likely see customers park on surrounding roads, contrary to policy.
An Environmental Health Officer, meanwhile, noted that while “adding 3x additional fuel pumps is in keeping with refurbishment work at most petrol stations”, an application had to be made for these and a £102 fee paid in order for new pumps to be compliant with regulations, while tests to the site’s vapour-recovery system were needed to demonstrate it could cope with the extra nozzles.
