First element of County Hall site plans submitted

The plans, submitted on behalf of Maple Grove Developments Ltd, are for the former fire station and Merley Croft sites.

The masterplan for the area, which includes a new Morpeth First School to the front of the site and a housing development of up to 200 homes on the County Hall site, was unveiled in October.

The first application to go in is for a mixed-use development which will include retail floorspace, a food store, a drive-thru restaurant and a family pub/restaurant.

A planning statement refers to ‘a number of significant benefits’, but a recent public meeting in the town was packed to the rafters with residents and businesses expressing major concerns.