MEMBERS of St Helens Council's Planning Committee have decided that a quality development is vital for one of the few key sites left on the approach to the town centre.
They have approved a brief which will give guidelines to developers and planning officers over the sort of scheme the council would like to see take place at the fortmer St Thomas Square.
The council-owned land, formerly occupied by council maisonettes, is being offered for sale at the moment. Tenders have been invited.
The brief approved by the committee lists the council's preferred uses for the site as leisure, offices, hotel or restaurant. They have indicated they would also be prepared to consider residential, limited retail use or community, although combination is likely to be the most acceptable.
However, members insisted that whatever was built on the land it must be a high-quality development, with one declaring: "We don't want anything that looks like a shed."
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