MORE THAN 150 signatures were collected in less than a day in opposition to plans for two drive-thru units in Denbigh.

In a development they say would bring up to 50 jobs to the town, Hindle Property Investments wants to turn the former Wool Producers Depot site on Grove Road, near Vale Street retail park, into two separate drive-thrus.

Although no fast food outlet has been named in the application, it does request that the site be used for ‘food and drink’ purposes.

A parking area would also be built at the site and the application requests that it be open between the hours of 8am and 11pm.

Residents have raised safety concerns over the planning application submitted to Denbighshire Council.

A decision on the application is pending but locals have been quick to voice their opinions, citing ‘safety’ as the main concern.

A petition set up by Jenny Steadman has collected 153 signatures already this week.

The petition reads: “An already dangerous road will become significantly more dangerous with the road changes at the junction; increased vehicle access would cause gridlock when queues form; road limitations on the bend will cause further problems for large transport vehicles accessing Lidl.

“On top of this, there will be environmental issues - pollution, litter, odours, rats, anti-social behaviour etc which will impact local residents.”

Speaking to the Denbighshire Free Press, Jenny added: “Safety is the top priority and the biggest concern among residents living in the local area.

“We are determined to have an organised campaign against this as the introduction of these fast food outlets would only make things worse for an area that is already dangerous.

“Some people are already afraid to leave their homes due to the dangers of lorries having to cross onto the other side of the road in order to take the sharp bend and this would only make these types of issues even more intense and increase traffic.

“Not to mention that you would also have a big neon-lit sign facing residential homes at all hours of the night. There are all sorts of issues involved but safety is our main concern and the biggest reason for opposition.”

In 2019, when an initial application was submitted by Hindle Property Investments, Denbighshire County Council revealed its scheme to tackle childhood obesity in the county, due to it having one of the highest rates of overweight children in Wales.

But Jenny believes the introduction of two fast food outlets so close to nearby schools, including Denbigh High School, will only entice children further into eating junk food.

She added: “There was a big push for dealing with obesity in the area but this goes against that completely - especially with a high school located less than five minutes away from the potential fast food outlets.”

In response, a statement from Hindle Property Investments read: “The planning application is a resubmission of a previous proposal. Having listened to the concerns previously raised the current scheme includes a range of highway improvements, including the provision of pavements where there is none at present on Grove Road.

“This will not only serve the scheme but will have wider benefits for the community in improving pedestrian and highway safety.”