The regeneration of the site of a hotel forced to close after a fire is set to go ahead.

Development company Paloma II (Industrial) LLP has been given planning permission to build a garden centre, a shop and a thrive-through coffee shop on land that was used by the Madison Hotel in Oxford Road in Gablecross, just off the White Hart Roundabout.

The hotel was shut down after a bad fire in 2016 and was so badly damaged it had to be demolished.

Paloma II’s plan is for a large shop, which won’t primarily sell food, with an external garden centre compound attached and a separate drive-through and coffee shop.

The shop’s purpose is described in the application as selling ‘bulky goods’ which might be kitchen white goods such as fridges freezers and washing machines, or furniture like sofas, wardrobes and beds.

The attached drawing and reports submitted by the developer indicated that the national coffee chain Costa will operate the coffee shop and drive-through.

The site is currently cleared land to the immediate west of the Hobbeycraft and Dunelm Stores in St Margaret’s Retail Park.

Paloma II’s application said of the large rectangular buildings: “The siting, layout and design of the development is considered to represent a high design quality that responds to site constraints, surrounding built form and would not result in the introduction of a new planning use that would be at odds with its surroundings or result in adverse impacts to surrounding land uses.”

Swindon Borough Council has a planning policy that out-of-town shopping developments should not have a bad impact on the town centre.

A retail impact assessment was included in the application.

In the report recommending approval of the plans, the council’s planning officers said: “The impact assessment concludes that the nature and scale of the proposal will not lead to a significant adverse impact either on the vitality and viability of existing centres or on future areas including the New Eastern Village  District Centre.

“ The principal impacts resulting from the proposed development are likely to be to other similar stores, retail parks or retail warehouses, although these would be spread out and as such is unlikely to result in material harm to any other retail.

”Officers agree with the conclusions that the proposals would result in job creation, likely to be from the local area and private sector investment. These wider positive impacts associated with the proposal outweigh any perceived adverse impacts.”

The recommendation also noted that the application would be reusing a cleared brownfield site.