A SUPERMARKET giant could be set to build a massive new superstore at Felixstowe as part of a 30-acre development.

Richard Cornwell

A SUPERMARKET giant could be set to build a massive new superstore at Felixstowe as part of a 30-acre development.

The 60,000 sq ft store would be built on a field north of Walton High Road, along with 250 houses, including sheltered homes for the elderly, a 60-bed hotel, pub, private medical facility, three small shops and three small business units and a waste/energy centre.

There would also be a new road through the site linking High Road and Candlet Road, the Walton by-pass off the A14.

Unused stables will be demolished, and talks will be held with the Felixstowe Rifle Club to find it a new site elsewhere.

Tim Collins, a partner in Bidwells, agents for the landowners Trinity College, Cambridge, which owns 3,400 acres on the Felixstowe peninsula, said a planning application for the land behind Treetops would be made in mid-2010.

There is much work to do before the application is made and talks are taking place with Suffolk Coastal council on a range of issues.

“Nothing is set in stone at this stage. Tesco are the company we are working with,” said Mr Collins.

“This project could develop Walton as a district centre and provide a real focus. If it is carefully done, I think it can contribute to the overall development of this area in a constructive way.

“People will have concerns about the suitability and desirability and that is understandable and we want to know these at an early stage so we can address them.”

Philip Ridley, head of planning at Suffolk Coastal, said the council was writing to Felixstowe Town Council, Trimley parish councils and other interested parties to seek their help in identifying matters to be examined in a scoping report.

“We want the help of the town and parish councils and others to say what the environmental assessment should cover - the 'scope' of what the applicants need to address,” he said.

Lidl is preparing to open its new �1 million-plus supermarket just off the seafront in Felixstowe.

Mayor Angel Goodwin will be open the store in Langer Road on the November 19 at 8am.

Lidl replaces the resort's biggest eyesore, its old disused bus station, along with a former newsagent's and fish and chip shop alongside, and a council depot behind.

The two-acre site off the Ordnance roundabout at the junction of Langer Road and Garrison Lane is now home to the 1,400 sq metre store - which is expected to have a �2.6 million turnover - plus 100-space car park in front.