## Supplementary Report On Economic Benefits

Our ref 
40274/04/NG/SMH/CRO/DBu Date July 2015 
To Peak District National Park Authority From Nathaniel Lichfield & Partners 
 
Subject  
Economic Benefits Comparison: Foodstores within Riverside Business Park Regeneration and Bakewell Aldi Proposal 


## 1.0 Introduction

1.1 
This Supplementary Report concerns two proposals for foodstores within 
Bakewell.  It provides an overview of the economic benefits of each, before undertaking a comparative analysis to judge which is likely to have the greatest overall economic benefits locally, for Bakewell and in the wider Peak District 
area. 

## 2.0 Details Of The Respective Proposals

2.1 
The Peak Sub-Region Retail and Town Centre Study (2009) concludes that the 
town of Bakewell retains just over half (51%) of its main food shopping spend, 
whilst the only main foodstore provision in the area (a Co-Op) trades well above its company benchmark level.  The trading performance of the Co-Op 
and the potential for claw-back of expenditure currently directed to destinations outside of the Bakewell area means that the development of a new foodstore in the town is unlikely to have any significant employment displacement impact 
on the existing town centre foodstore.  
2.2 
The 2009 Study notes that a lack of a mainstream foodstore and the extent of 
overtrading of the existing foodstore suggests that increasing the provision of foodstores within Bakewell would: 
"deliver particular quantitative and qualitative benefits through enhancing market share performance and widening the choice of foodstore provision for local residents."1 

2.3 
A full planning application (Ref: NP/DDD/0115/0043) for a 1,254 sq. m gross Aldi foodstore on the site of the former Cintride Factory, Buxton Road, was submitted to the Peak District National Park Authority [PDNPA] on 29 January 2015. Officers reported the proposal to Committee on 15 May 2015 and whilst 
                                               
 
Registered Office: 14 Regent's Wharf, All Saints Street, London N1 9RL 
Registered in England No. 2778116 Please visit our website for further information and contact details Members are minded to grant planning permission, permission is dependent upon the completion of a Section 106 Legal Agreement which is yet to be signed. 

2.4 
The proposals for Riverside Business Park [RBP] are for extensive 
redevelopment in phases.  The first phase is hotel-led.  The second phase 
(planning application reference Ref: NP/DDD/0415/0340 registered 30 April 
2015) includes the proposed development of a 1,579 sq. m foodstore2 
alongside units containing other commercial uses and office space.  Planning 
permission is in granted, and a start is made on, a new bridged access over 
the adjacent river, from the RBP to the A6 Buxton Road.  Completing the new 
bridged access will be required as a pre-condition to bringing the foodstore into 
use, with the new access only being achievable financially following realisation of the development value of the proposed foodstore. 

## 3.0 Benefits Of The Aldi Proposal

3.1 
In its Planning Support Statement, Turley (for Aldi) states that the Aldi scheme 
will create 26 construction jobs3.  By applying the assumption that 1 FTE 
construction job in the East Midlands generates £60,320 GVA, NLP estimates 
that these construction jobs would create approximately £160,000 of additional 
GVA per annum during the construction period. 
3.2 
Once operational, the applicant states that the proposed Aldi foodstore will 
support 40 FTE jobs (made up of 30 full time employees and 20 part time 
employees4).  In the absence of information from the developer regarding the 
GVA impact of this potential employment, NLP estimates that once operational, the direct operational jobs associated with the Aldi foodstore could generate an 
additional £1.4m GVA annually5. 
3.3 
Operational employment facilitates indirect or 'induced' employment in the form 
of spending on goods, services and supplies as part of the supply chain of a 
foodstore.  Whilst no details of induced employment estimates have been 
made publically available, it is assumed that the Aldi scheme would benefit from similar employment multiplier effects as the proposed RBP retail foodstore development (that is, reflecting the characteristics of the proposed development, an induced employment rate of 1.21 for the local area and 1.38 
for the wider region6).  Applying this multiplier allows NLP to estimate that the 
40 FTE direct operational jobs which the proposed Aldi development would 
All Saints Street, London N1 9RL 
Registered in England No. 2778116 Please visit our website for further provide, could generate a further 8 FTE jobs in the local area and a further 15 FTE jobs in the wider region. 

3.4 
A Section 106 Agreement associated with the proposed development is 
intended to secure the purchase of a bus for a local community group7.  The 
legal agreement has yet to be made publically available, so at this stage it is 
unclear under what arrangement the bus is to be provided.  However, it is our 
understanding that the only contribution is for the capital payment towards the 
purchase of a bus itself.  This is unusual, as in general where there is a 
reliance on new bus connectivity prior to granting planning permission (and in 
accordance with Regulation 123 of the CIL Regulations8), it would be usual to 
ensure that there is provision for operational funding alongside a capital 
payment. 
3.5 
The Planning Support Statement also claims that the Aldi proposal will act as 
enabling development and provide a new serviced access which will unlock the remainder of the former Cintride Factory site for employment development.  No further analysis is provided in the Statement of the likely economic benefits to 
arise from this. DCC Highways has expressly stated that the ability to achieve 
access, to any proposal for which an application for planning permission is 
submitted and which relies on the new Cintride access, will be considered on its own merits at the time of any application being submitted. It cannot 
therefore be said with any certainty that the proposed Aldi development will unlock development on the remainder of the Cintride factory site or what any future economic benefits of such development may be.  

## 4.0 Benefits Of The Rbp Proposal

4.1 
NLP's Economic Benefits Assessment9 (2015) estimates that the foodstore 
element of the proposed RBP development would generate up to 68 personyears of employment during the construction stage of the development (which includes not just the foodstore but also other commercial and office units).  The 
increase in GVA associated with these direct construction jobs equates to 
approximately £410,000 per annum during the period of the construction. 
4.2 
In addition to the employment associated with the construction of the foodstore 
(and other elements of the RBP application), the employment generated by the standalone foodstore, once operational, is estimated to total around 74 FTE 
direct jobs10, along with additional GVA equating to £2.6m per annum. 
 
Please visit our website for further 

4.3 
As the foodstore is but one element of the wider RBP development, the total 
operational jobs expected to be generated by the proposed development is 202 FTEs (including the 74 FTEs relating to the proposed foodstore).  The additional GVA generated by the application as a whole is also significantly 
greater, totalling £15.3m per annum.11 
4.4 
As discussed above, operational employment facilitates further indirect and 
'induced' employment in the form of spending on goods, services and supplies as part of the foodstore supply chain. 
4.5 
Using an induced employment multiplier which reflects the characteristics of 
the proposed RBP development, a further 42 FTE jobs would be supported in the local area and 76 FTE jobs within the wider region.  It should be noted that 
this supply-chain employment relates to the entire development proposal, and that only a proportion of these jobs would be induced by the operation of the foodstore itself.  It is estimated that the proposed foodstore in isolation would 
sustain around 15 FTE jobs locally, and 28 FTE jobs across the wider region.12 
4.6 
Alongside the retail element of the RBP application, other uses include commercial and office uses, whilst the mixed-use application is in itself just one 
part of an even wider planned redevelopment of the Riverside Business Park 
as a whole.  Of particular note, without the provision of a new bridged access as part of the foodstore RBP application, the future expansion of businesses that currently occupy the remainder of the Business Park would be 
constrained. 
4.7 
Although not part of phase 1 or 2 of the proposed development directly, it is considered that there is potential for a further £2.5m of regeneration-related 
investment that would be facilitated by the improved access brought to the area by the new bridged access. 
4.8 
This would include the expansion of existing on-site businesses such as 
Pinelog, which currently employs around 65 (mainly full time) employees at the RBP.  Pinelog has confirmed that it would be in a position to stay at the RBP 
and would expand and employ more workers if the bridge and access road 
were constructed.  Similarly, Thornbridge Brewery currently employs around 35 
members of staff at its site and has confirmed that it would aim to double its 
workforce, which in turn would facilitate a significant increase in production, if 
the development comes forward.13 
Please visit our website for further 

4.9 
The economic benefits of this wider development also align well with a broad 
range of local planning policy objectives.  This is particularly the case through enhancing economic prosperity by creating employment opportunities for local people; increasing the share of higher value private sector employment in the district; re-using previously developed land; and bringing vacant buildings back into use. 
5.0 
Comparison of Both Applications 
5.1 
Table 1 compares the direct and indirect benefits of both retail foodstore applications. 

Aldi foodstore application (Ref: NP/DDD/0115/0043) 
Riverside Business Park foodstore application (Ref: 

- 
Construction employment of approximately 26 jobs, with 
associated GVA increase of approximately £160,000 per year of construction 
- 
Operational employment of approximately 40 FTE jobs 
(comprising 30 FT jobs and 20 PT jobs), with an associated GVA increase of approximately £1.4m annually 
- 
Operational employment inducing a further 8 FTE jobs 
within local shops, services and other businesses, and a further 15 across the wider region 
- 
As part of a possible Section 106 agreement, the offer to 
fund the capital provision (but not necessarily the 
operational costs15) of a bus for the local Bakewell and 
Eyam community group 
- 
 
 
- 
A new bridged access over the river from Riverside Business 
Park onto the A6 
 
5.2 
The two proposed developments can be considered against one another in 
order to determine which provides the greater benefit to the wider area.  Whilst the Aldi scheme is likely to generate employment, there is a significantly 
greater employment benefit from the RBP foodstore and related development. 
                                               
 

NP/DDD/0415/0340) 

- 
Up to 68 person-years of construction employment, with 
associated GVA increase of c.£410,000 per year of construction 
- 
Operational employment of up to 74 FTE jobs as part of the 
retail foodstore, with associated GVA increase of approximately £2.6m annually 
- 
In addition, between 100-130 operational FTE jobs14 resulting 
from units containing other commercial and office space, with associated GVA increase of approximately £12.7m annually 
- 
Support a further 42 induced FTE jobs within local shops, 
services and other businesses and 76 within the wider region 
- 
The potential facilitation of up to £2.5m of further 
regeneration-related investment across the wider Riverside Business Park 
Please visit our website for further 

5.3 
Furthermore, if planning permission for the Aldi on Buxton Road is granted, 
then the viability of the proposed foodstore at the RBP would be placed in 
doubt.  The access bridge is only viable if the foodstore remains a constituent part of the RBP second phase application.  Without the foodstore, it is highly likely that the bridge and connecting access road would no longer be delivered, as no alternative uses at the RBP would be able to generate sufficient investment levels to offset these infrastructure costs.  It follows that if the access road were no longer viable to deliver, it is probable that the proposed development would not proceed as currently envisaged. 
5.4 
A bridge is affordable if a new foodstore comes forward but no other use could generate the level of capital investment required.  Without the bridge, there are 
potentially serious adverse consequences for:  
- 
expansion of existing occupiers' businesses;  
- 
further employment use at RBP; and 
- 
environmental improvement of the site  
5.5 
As noted in the NLP economic benefits assessment16, the access bridge 
(contained within the second phase of the proposed second phase RBP development) is critical for the expansion of Pinelog operations; the wider 
redevelopment of RBP (including environmental enhancements); and 
associated additional employment within the area.  Without the foodstore and therefore the access bridge, the expansion of Pinelog (along with other 
businesses within RBP) would not occur. 
5.6 
The granting of planning permission for an Aldi foodstore on the former 
Cintride site would potentially prevent significant levels of future investment at RBP from coming forward, jeopardising the expansion and future sustainability of important local businesses currently located at the site and therefore the 
additional employment that would be associated with such expansion. 
5.7 
In contrast, granting planning permission for a foodstore at the RBP site would 
not only encourage existing companies to remain at the site, but it would also allow them to consolidate and expand their businesses which would in turn 
attract other businesses to the area.  This process of 'agglomeration economics' could potentially increase the likelihood that the former Cintride site 
and adjacent employment areas to come forward for economic uses.  It would also provide a regenerative benefit by enhancing the various gateway sites in 
the vicinity of RBP, alongside more generalised environmental improvements across a wider area. 
                                               
 
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## 6.0 Conclusion

6.1 
To conclude, it is considered that on the basis of the evidence contained within this report, not only do the proposed RBP developments provide a greater 
potential number of overall employment benefits associated with the foodstore 
itself (c.70 operational FTE jobs compared to Aldi's c.40 FTE jobs), there is also a very significant opportunity cost (or 'benefit foregone') which may be lost 
if permission is granted to the standalone Aldi foodstore on Buxton Road. 
6.2 
This is due to the much wider employment benefits associated with the RBP 
application, namely: 
- 
The larger number of construction and operational jobs (both direct, indirect and induced) forecast for the RBP proposal relative to the Aldi 
application, the generation of which is dependent upon the RBP foodstore coming forward; and 
- 
A foodstore not coming forward as part of the second phase of redevelopment at RBP would remove the viability of a new bridged access road into the site and hence almost certainty prevent it from 
coming forward.  This in turn would drastically compromise the viability and/or attractiveness of the Business Park as a commercial site.  This would further constrain business expansion/redevelopment, potentially 
leading to a spiral of decline in the local area as companies are forced to move away to locations that better meet the needs of modern 
businesses. 
6.3 
It is for these reasons that it is considered that the proposed foodstore at the 
RBP site provides a considerably larger and more comprehensive package of employment benefits that can be delivered by a standalone Aldi foodstore. 
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