Tesco has rowed in behind the owners of the Erneside Shopping Centre to oppose plans by Marks & Spencer to relocate to a new build store at a retail park on the outskirts of Enniskillen.
M&S is seeking to leave its long-standing unit at Erneside for a new 17,800 sq ft food hall at the recently constructed Lakeland Retail Park on Cornagrade Road.
Muntermellan Ltd, which acquired Erneside last December, has opposed the proposal, arguing M&S has not adequately assessed or discounted alternative town centre or edge-of-centre sites.
The company has also questioned the retail need for the store and cited the impact on Enniskillen town centre.
Muntermellan, which is jointly owned by DV8 founders Ian and Julie McMahon, along with property investors Stuart Draffin and Donall McCann, bought Erneside for £12.4m last Christmas.
M&S is a longstanding anchor tenant at Erneside Shopping Centre in Enniskillen.
It came just over three years after they paid £46.5m for the Rushmere shopping centre and launched a major investment to regenerate the Craigavon retail complex.
It has now emerged that Tesco has officially lodged an objection to the M&S plans via its planning agent Martin Robeson.
The document submitted to Fermanagh and Omagh District Council in recent days broadly mirrors the objections made by Erneside, claiming it “would result in significant harm to the vitality, attractiveness and viability of Enniskillen town centre”.
The interjection by Tesco is understood to have promoted a new PR drive by M&S to seek public backing for its plans.
On Wednesday, M&S issued a statement via its Northern Ireland PR agency, urging members of the public to submit letters of support to Fermanagh and Omagh District Council.
CGI of the proposed new M&S food hall at Lakelands Retail Park in Enniskillen
It comes as the planning application from M&S and the owners of the Lakeland Retail Park is expected to go before the council’s planning committee.
Making the plea to the public, M&S regional manager John Paul McShane said: “Our plans for a new foodhall at Lakelands Retail Park represent a significant investment and would help secure our long-term future in Enniskillen.
“We hope local residents will show their support for the plans.”
Co Tyrone developer Elm Grange Limited is behind the Lakelands Retail Park development.
The project at the former Unipork factory site originally proposed five retail units, a hotel, a six screen cinema, an indoor play centre, a bowling alley and two garden centres.
The cinema and bowling alley aspect was understood to be a significant factor in swaying councillors on Fermanagh and Omagh District Council’s planning committee to overturn the recommendation of planning officials by just a single vote in 2021.
Lidl has pledged to retain its existing town centre supermarket for five years following the opening of the new Lakelands store.
However, the long-term future of the site remains in question, with Tesco’s agent stating “it is understood that the store is ultimately intended to close”.