TESCO'S vacant site in Ilkley has been sold to a company that builds luxury retirement homes.

The Gazette can this week reveal land at Mayfield Road in town has been bought by McCarthy and Stone.

Its proposed multi-million pound regeneration of the former Spooner factory site will include high-quality retirement living, assisted living accommodation, a hotel, office space, nursery and an extension to the existing Spooner Industries unit.

McCarthy and Stone (Northern Region) regional managing director, Steve Secker, said: “We recognise this is an important site in Ilkley and we want to work with the community to develop a proposal that will be valued locally.

"Our plans would improve local housing choice and deliver a high-quality attractive redevelopment, as well as creating a significant number of new jobs for the town.”

The site was to be home to a new Tesco store but the supermarket chain announced last September it was scrapping its plans and put the site on the open market.

A Tesco spokesman said: “Since we announced we would not be delivering a new store at this location, we have been actively marketing the land. We are keen to ensure it is brought back to use as quickly as possible for the local community, and are pleased to confirm we have agreed the sale of the site to McCarthy and Stone.”

A McCarthy and Stone spokesman added: "Arrangements are currently being made to meet local stakeholders and neighbours of the site, to give them an opportunity to view the early proposals. This will be followed by a public exhibition for the wider community to view the scheme and provide their views."

Councillor Anne Hawkesworth (Ind, Ilkley) said: "Without seeing the plans, it is difficult to make any comment, but I think there should be starter homes on the site somewhere.

"Everything they are talking about will have to include public, open spaces and adequate car parking."

She welcomed the news Spooners will have space to expand.

McCarthy and Stone is also behind plans for the development of retirement homes in the grounds of Ilkley's Craiglands Hotel. If approved, the development will see the Cowpasture Road land redeveloped with 27 two-bedroom apartments in an age-exclusive development for the over-55s.

A spokesperson for Ilkley Labour Party, which forms the opposition group on Ilkley Parish Council, said: "With the Craiglands site as well being developed by them, it does appear there may be a monopoly locally on the development of this type of property. We can only hope having such a grip will not lead to building timescales or margins being inflated against what might exist if there was effective competition in new-build retirement provision.

"We will be putting pressure for an early decision from McCarthy and Stone on which housing association they will be working with to provide a significant proportion of affordable homes for rent on the Tesco site."

The McCarthy and Stone project team is holding individual meetings with stakeholders on Monday as it starts its pre-application community consultation programme.

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