Residents of Liverton this week expressed doubts about a planned huge new garden centre at Trago Mills. The scheme – it would create 50 new jobs and involve a garden centre in a garden park setting, cafe, restaurant and bandstand – would help boost Trago's coffers, a public inquiry in Newton Abbot was told. Teignbridge Council had approved the application in February 2005, but it was called in by the Secretary of State in November 2005 on the grounds that it did not comply with regional planning guidance, development planning guidance nor the Teignbridge plan. Government inspector Ken Barton, who held the two-day inquiry at Forde House, had visited local town centres and other garden centres in the Teignbridge locality before the inquiry opened, so he could make comparisons. He was bearing in mind the recent judgement on Probus, a planned garden centre in Cornwall that was likewise subject to a government inquiry, which concluded that garden centres were not out of place in town centres. The inquiry was told that Trago Mills was a significant employer of almost 600 staff and was visited by residents and visitors as a tourist attraction and retail centre. The new garden centre would create 50 more jobs and the facilities – 3,900 sq m of covered retail space,10,000 sq m of outside sales space, 3,000 sq m of demonstration gardens and 6,800 sq m of garden park – would be valued by all. If the application went ahead the Trago road would be resited round the edge of the site and the new cafe and restaurant would provide 425 covers for visitors. £750,000 had already been spent on levelling and tiering the site prior to building. Trago boss Bruce Roberston explained the Trago philosophy of combining leisure and retail use and Trago's economical pricing. He said the fire in 2004 had affected sales at Trago and the new garden centre would make 'a huge difference to the image of Trago by giving something of genuine quality to probably the more mature of the business's clientele'. Trago overall, in both Devon and Cornwall, has an annual turnover of more than £95m. Teignbridge council was largely in favour of Trago's application, but Liverton residents voiced some doubts about the project. Dr Don Moody was concerned about the increase in traffic on the Newton to Bovey road, and at Drumbridges roundabout. He asked what would happen if emergency vehicles had to travel here when the roads were gridlocked by Trago traffic. Highways engineer Martin Paddle assured him that the road and roundabout both had ample spare capacity. Liverton parish councillor David Bardell and landowner David Besley backed Dr Moody's account of already overcrowded roads before checking that the Staplehill Road entrance to the Trago site would be closed to motor traffic when building work was completed. They also voiced Barn Park residents' concerns about the potential noise hazard of the new bandstand. The inspector frequently raised the question of conditions that could be imposed on planning permission – such as the limitation of retail sales in the new building to only plants and related garden products, and the implementation of a travel plan before approval is given. Trago has not yet agreed to these conditions. 'I feel very hopeful of the outcome,' Bruce Robertson said at the end of the inquiry: 'I am frustrated that it has taken five years so far – and that local government has suffered this interference from central government.' The inspector also heard evidence from Trago architect Charles Hunt; Teignbridge town planner John Collier-Marsh; and other experts involved in the planning application. Six letters objecting to the original planning application for the garden centre were received by Teignbridge Council. The inspector's verdict will be announced later.
