THE chairman of Bingley Town Council has called on a supermarket giant to landscape an “eyesore” area in the town.

Terry Brown has urged site owners Sainsbury’s to landscape the former Bradford & Bingley site in Main Street.

The site is currently surrounded by wooden boards covered in a green plant-style design.

The town council is also investigating if it can ask Bradford Council to use legal powers to issue a notice to order that the property be repaired and made more presentable.

Sainsbury’s bought the site in 2010 and won planning permission to demolish the building and construct a new store in 2011. But in April last year, as demolition was going ahead, the chain decided to put the site on the market.

Sainsbury’s says it has been in contact with Bingley Town Council over their concerns.

Cllr Brown said: “The site is totally central to the town.

“They have left us with this empty space in a huge area.

“We, as the council, are urging Sainsbury’s to remove the eyesore of the hoarding and for them to better landscape the site.

“Goodness knows how long the site will be like this.

“The centre of Bingley does not look particularly nice because of this at the moment. How long will it take for Sainsbury’s to find a suitable buyer?

“All that is inside there is an old substation and new substation that Sainsbury’s were required to do by Bradford Council.”

Sainsbury’s installed a new substation on the site as part of its planning agreement. The old transformer was relocated from the site by Northern Power in May.

A small structure which housed the old transformer remains on the site and has been included by Sainsbury’s in the sale of the land. A spokesman for the chain confirmed it would be up to the new site owners to undertake its demolition.

Sainsbury’s said it would continue to keep residents updated on any sale of the site.

A spokesman said: “We understand the town council’s concerns and have been in contact with them to discuss the issue.

“We are monitoring the site on a regular basis and have hoardings in place to make sure the area is safe and secure.

“We will continue to keep local people updated as we progress with the sale of the site.”

Demolition work on the site begin in January last year and took 24 weeks to complete. Contractors T E Scudder Ltd, of Wembley, carried out the demolition and removal of the waste and spoil in covered lorries.

The original building’s staggered design was intended to represent the nearby Five Rise Locks on the Leeds and Liverpool canal.

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