Residents on the Isle of Wight have welcomed plans to build a “mega-McDonald’s” on the outskirts of a village on the island after months of back and forth. The new restaurant with drive-thru was approved for construction in a business park just outside the seaside village of Lake this week, with the site set to become McDonald’s‘ third branch in the holiday hotspot. The multi-million-pound development has been largely supported by residents, despite concerns from officers at the Isle of Wight Council over adverse impacts on the wider area and its location outside of a designated town centre.
It is expected to create over 120 full-time and part-time staff, which the multinational fast food chain said would be largely recruited “from the local area”. One member of the public said the restaurant represented “a valuable opportunity for our community” and would offer an “attractive and modern dining option” to residents, who currently have to travel to Newport or Rye to get their McDonald’s fix.
“I support this application because it means more jobs, more food options, and it’ll be better than what’s currently there,” another resident added.
However, others weren’t as enthusiastic, with one local warning that the new branch would “trash the island” and cause a spike in litter discarded in hedgerows and fields.
Another said: “We should encourage healthy eating and support local businesses and restaurants. The KFC in Lake is always empty – so surely a McDonald’s would be the same.”
Reacting to the council’s approval of the project, a McDonald’s spokesperson said: “The proposals provide the opportunity for McDonald’s to meet a longstanding requirement for a restaurant to serve this catchment area, to meet customer demand and introduce additional choice in the market.”
“The proposed development represents a multi-million-pound investment creating jobs both during the construction and operation phases, resulting in many associated benefits for the local area,” they added. “[It] constitutes sustainable development on a brownfield site, in a commercial area, surrounded by similar and compatible uses.”
