Convenience store granted permission to sell alcohol in Cannock
A new convenience store in Cannock has been granted permission to sell alcohol to customers despite objections from nearby residents.
Watch more of our videos on ShotsTV.com
and on Freeview 262 or Freely 565
Hednesford Local is set to open at the former Electro-Fix shop on Hednesford Road and an application to sell alcohol between 8am and 11pm was submitted to Cannock Chase Council.
The application form stated: “This vacant shop is currently closed. The two-storey lock-up, ground floor retail property, is situated on the end of a terraced block of houses.
“The premises intend to trade as a convenience store with an off-licence facility serving the local community within a predominately residential area. The premises used to trade as Electro-Fix, an electrical appliance store.
“The applicant Is an experienced operator who operates other convenience stores at (various) locations. Subject to the grant of a premises licence, he wishes to add this site to his list.
“He intends to undertake extensive refurbishment to upgrade and relaunch the premises into an upmarket convenience store with an off-licence facility.”
The authority received two objections to the proposals from residents, raising concerns about the planned opening hours and parking. One neighbour said:
“This is going to encourage all sorts making me feel unsafe – I live here as a single mom with two daughters.
“Has anyone been out to see the side of the shop as it isn’t suitable – where are customers going to park? It is also on a main road so double yellow lines out the front.”
Another said: “We believe 11pm is much too late to close the shop, having people coming and going late at night while the children are trying to sleep.
“There is also an issue with parking which is already at a premium for myself and my neighbours. The road has double yellows all the way up so the only place for people to park will be next to our house and this could very easily cause obstructions if too many cars are trying to park there.
“My main concern is the opening hours which I believe, for the residential area the shop is situated, are too long; they will almost certainly have a detrimental effect on the neighbourhood. I believe 6pm would be a more suitable closing time for the shop, which I think is more than reasonable.”
Cannock Chase Council’s licensing sub-committee granted the licence on Tuesday (January 14), subject to a series of conditions. These include operating a “Challenge 25” policy to prevent sale of alcohol to underage customers and CCTV covering all internal areas.
