PROPOSALS to transform the south of the town are to be decided next week.

Phase one of the South Macclesfield Development Area (SMDA) could see 220 homes and a new 80,000 sq ft supermarket built on land between Congleton Road and London Road.

The scheme, which involves 27 hectares of Cheshire East Council-owned land – the equivalent of 45 football pitches – also involves relocating the present playing fields and building of a new sports pavilion and play areas.

It is part of a ‘master plan’ for the 63-hectare site, which could eventually see 800 more homes, a new £3m primary school, a link road from Congleton Road to London Road and a new stadium for Macclesfield Town Football Club.

Planning officers have recommended councillors on the strategic planning committee approve the scheme when they meet on October 21.

But there is significant objection to the supermarket element and its potential impact on town centre business from Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Eskmuir - which owns the Grosvenor Shopping Centre.

Tesco’s opposes the project claiming it will have “a significant adverse impact upon the vitality and viability of the town centre”.

Macclesfield Civic Society claims the plan contradicted the council’s own town centre first policy and is “driven by financial expediency and nothing else”.

However, in a report ahead of the meeting, planning officers argue “ The impact of the foodstore has been assessed by consultants and it is considered that there is an overriding quantitative and qualitative need for a new foodstore in Macclesfield. The scheme represents a sustainable form of development and the planning balance weighs in favour of supporting the development.”

Meanwhile, Gawsworth Parish Council raises concerns regarding traffic and access onto Congleton Road.

This first phase of the SMDA proposes zones, separated by a network of paths and green space for pedestrians and cyclists known as greenways.

The north of the site is for housing, a mixture of one to four-bedroom properties.

The southern half of the site is split into a sports area in the east and the supermarket area in the west.