A flood warning and evacuation plan for Aldi’s proposed supermarket off Winchelsea Road has been made public.
In a report lodged on Rother District Council’s (RDC) planning portal on February 10, Aldi’s consultants point out that the ground floor of the supermarket would be “set higher than the predicted flood level”, so evacuation would only be needed to prevent people becoming stranded in the store.
GTA Civils and Transport say the main aims of the plan are to raise awareness of the flood risk and to ensure the store manager plans in advance how occupants would evacuate the area before any flooding peaked.
The main flood threat would come from nearby rivers “overtopping”, or from a breach of tidal defences. Aldi staff members would be obliged to subscribe to Floodline, the Environment Agency’s free flood warning system, as this gives a 24-hour alert message or a warning more than 12 hours before a predicted event. All Aldi staff would receive training on flood alerts and evacuation procedures.
However, if tidal defences are breached, flooding could occur rapidly, possibly within ten minutes. A special flood evacuation alarm and customer signage would be fitted in the store.
Plans for the new Aldi are only part of the proposed development on Winchelsea Road which also includes homes and retirement housing.
Meanwhile, the consultants working for Aldi are expected to be working to persuade National Highways that its proposals for road access are safe and workable. A deadline of April 29 has been set or “until all matters are resolved to our satisfaction.”
RDC is allowing comments to be lodged on Aldi’s planning application despite a deadline of August 9 2024. Jempson’s or its consultants have so far submitted four objections and a holding objection to Aldi’s proposal — reinforcing the perception that Jempson’s sees Aldi as a threat to its Rye operation. While the current supermarket is not without its supporters, it has come under heavy fire from local residents keen to see lower grocery prices.
It’s unclear whether Aldi has a ‘plan B’ should it fail to gain planning approval. All the other available sites in Rye itself are spoken for, although there appears to be some uncertainty over the plan for housing at the 23 Ferry Road site as the Environment Agency says an acceptable flood risk assessment has not been received. A year ago, Rye Town Council also objected to the planning application. The site was originally designated for a supermarket.
Image Credits: Harris Partnership , David Worwood .
So jempsons have submitted 4 objections to Aldi locating to Rye, so it was okay for them to locate to Northiam, to the detriment of the village shops there, talk about double standards.