Lidl secures York green light

Permission has been granted for the demolition of a former TK Maxx store and erection of a 24,000 sq ft premises at Monks Cross.

The supermarket chain, which along with rival Aldi has been driving forward development in the sector in recent years, will replace the former TK Maxx at Monks Cross Drive, the store having stood empty since the clothing discounter relocated to a different unit within the North York retail hotspot in 2020.

The new unit will consist of approximately 16,000 sq ft of shopping space and 8,000 sq ft of warehouse and back-of-house areas. The plans also include a drive-thru F&B unit and 137 car parking spaces.

Lidl’s plans represent an update on a previous, similar application granted consent in January 2023, in which the applicant proposed only a partial demolition of the existing store.

Lidl’s proposals were considered at City of York Council’s planning committee meeting on 26 September, and can be viewed on the local authority’s planning portal with the reference 23/02200/FULM.

Planner Rapleys leads a professional team also including HTC Architects, FDA Landscape, transport advisor Bryan G Hall, Topping Engineers, Wardell Armstrong, DDA, Sirius Geotechnical, Tyler Grange and AWA.

Objectors to the project included Huntington Parish Council and Sainsbury’s, which said: “There is simply no need for another
foodstore in York, and the impact from the drive-thru is unknown given that the tenant has not been disclosed.”