THE owners of Yate Shopping Centre have pledged to continue fighting to turn two shops into restaurants after planning permission was refused.

Dominion Corporate Trustees want to redevelop the former Adam’s children’s clothing store and Motorworld shop and create a 35-space car park on South Parade, but the application has been turned down by South Gloucestershire Council.

Group property developer Mark Hull said the decision was ‘ridiculous’ and insisted they would not give up on the plans.

"Everybody says they need more parking in Yate, it is ridiculous," he said. "We are reviewing our position and it is likely we will be going to appeal.

"We are not going to just sit down on this. We did everything we were asked to do and these decisions are being made by people who do not know Yate."

He said a meeting was due to take place with local councillors this week.

The plans are part of Dominion’s vision to open up the shopping centre during the evenings. They want to demolish an empty framing shop outside Yate Post Office and rip out several trees on land next to Kennedy Way to create the car park.

However, the council threw out the plans on the grounds they were unsafe for drivers and pedestrians.

Council planning officer Chris Gosling said the authority supported the diversification of Yate Shopping Centre but said it could not allow the car park to go ahead.

He said: "The change of use from retail to restaurant units is considered to aid the diversification of use of land within the centre of Yate, which would boost the night-time economy locally and provide facilities which would be appropriate to a town centre.

"This consultation process has raised concerns over the loss of landscaping which would occur through the creation of a car park.

"The proposed design is not considered to integrate the car parking successfully within the pedestrian areas, giving too much prominence to the former and reducing the pedestrian area to a pavement narrower than that fronting shops in other parts of the town cente."

In a report on the planning application, a spokesman for the council’s transport department said: "Given the close proximity of the access to the car park to the Kennedy Way junction, I am concerned that additional vehicular movements to and from this new car park would severely impact on movements at the traffic signal junction with Kennedy Way."

Yate Town Council objected to the plans because of the parking provision and loss of trees. However, the council is in support of creating a night-time economy in Yate and is hoping to attract successful restaurant chains such as Bella Pasta and Pizza Express.