THREE major proposals for new supermarkets in Christchurch will be decided at a meeting in June.

In the past few months, applications for three new stores have been submitted to Christchurch council and a special meeting of the planning control committee has been organised for June.

The applications include a Morrisons on the site of Beagle Technology in Stony Lane with Bournemouth-based developer Quantum proposing to build a food store – described as one of the “Big Four” – as part of a development at Bailey Retail Park.

The third proposal is for a food store at the former Stylesouth Interior site at Meteor Retail Park in Somerford Road.

All three developers have undertaken public consultation events with local people.

An appeal for a previous food store application at Meteor Retail Park was dismissed by an inspector at the end of last year following concerns about the effect it would have on the vitality of the town centre.

But developers Brookhouse, who submitted their scheme in February, said they had responded to those concerns and the new supermarket would be half the size of before.

Presently, Sainsbury’s, Lidl, Waitrose, Co-operative and Marks and Spencer are operating in the borough at town centre and out-of-town sites.

Cllr Colin Jamieson, chairman of Christchurch council’s planning control committee said: “It is likely that all three of the planning applications we have for supermarket developments will be going before a Planning Control Committee in June.

“However each application will be considered on its own merits. It was felt that it would best to look at these in a separate committee due to the size of the developments and the nature of considerations that need to be taken into account.”