Mysterious blow for Kirkby as McDonald's pulls plug on major plan for restaurant

For the fast-food giant has suddenly withdrawn its planning application to Ashfield District Council for a drive-through at a vacant site at Lane End, opposite the town’s train station.

Neither McDonald’s, nor the council, is prepared to publicly explain the reasons for the decision. And it is not known if the scheme might be resurrected in the future.

The restaurant would have created 120 full-time or part-time jobs, and support for up to 200 more during its construction.

The investment was seen as a huge boost for Kirkby's economy, potentially generating millions of pounds, and an ideal way to redevelop a derelict area that is often viewed as a gateway to the town.

The one-acre site, which is close to an Aldi supermarket and the Urban Road Business Park, has been empty since the closure of an engineering factory many years ago.

The plan received overwhelming backing from Kirkby residents, who have bombarded the council’s website with positive comments since the application was submitted during the summer.

And a public consultation launched by McDonald’s itself revealed that 83 per cent of more than 250 people who took part were in favour of the drive-through restaurant and takeaway.

One person said: “It would make Kirkby a more appealing site for visitors and bring in revenue for other businesses”. Another commented: “It is a great chance for a global company to offer investment into Kirkby and to transform that part of town.”

However, Ashfield’s planning officers have confirmed that McDonald’s has now pulled the plug on the full application, and a withdrawal notice has been posted on the council’s website by its chief executive, Theresa Hodgkinson.

The notice reads: “The application has been withdrawn from the register by the applicant. It has been withdrawn as per the request from the applicant’s agent.”

That agent is the leading planning and development consultancy, Lichfields, of Leeds. A spokesperson for the council said it would not be commenting further.

The Chad contacted McDonald’s head office to seek the company’s reasons for withdrawing. But cryptically, all a spokesperson would say was: “This isn’t something we can comment on at the moment.”

The decision will not have been taken lightly by McDonald’s because thousands of pounds were spent by the company on assessing and researching the site, as well as employing agents, experts and specialists to piece together the planning application and its array of associated documents.

The restaurant would have covered 377 square metres, with seating inside and a patio area outside, as well as 33 parking spaces, cycle and motorcycle bays and electric vehicle (EV) charging points.

It would have been powered by 100 per cent renewable energy, while 80 per cent of its packaging would have been recyclable. McDonald’s had also promised to conduct litter patrols within a 150-metre radius every day.

McDonald’s operates more than 1,300 restaurants in the UK, which employ 125,000 people. There are already three in Ashfield – two at Sutton and one in Hucknall – as well as three in Mansfield.

The 24-hour drive-through close to Hucknall train station, which opened in 2019, was initially rejected by Ashfield Council, but went ahead after McDonald’s won an appeal to the government’s Planning Inspectorate.