Marham Park Bury St Edmunds shop update as deal falls through

FPC (Marham Park) Ltd said it has been "trying to negotiate a deal" with a stakeholder for the building of a new convenience store off Crosses Link on the Marham Park estate for the past 12 months. 

In a statement published on Monday, however, they said the deal has "sadly" fallen through. 

"We appreciate and share in the frustration that this delay has caused for the residents and hope that the community understand this is also a setback for us as well," they said.

"We’re now working closely with a national convenience store operator who also want to see the store open as soon as possible to provide the much-needed facility for the residents of Marham Park." 

The owners said they hit "a number of major challenges" with the project which delayed its construction.

"Simply put, the development hasn’t been viable due to construction cost inflation, high interest rates and being let down by other key stakeholders," they said.

"The timing of our acquisition of the land has meant that we have borne the brunt of the economic turbulence.

"We’re the most frustrated out of anyone and are not in the business of land banking." 

They said that the view is now "more positive" and they are "working closely with a national convenience store operator so the project can be brought forward in the near future."

The aim is to begin construction in 2025. 

"We are progressing with the outstanding planning matters as quickly as possible so the project can come forward and we greatly appreciate the support of West Suffolk Local Planning Authority in this regard," the statement read.

The lack of a shop on the estate has been a point of frustration for residents in recent months. 

In August, residents called for action at the disused site, with one stating: "They said when a certain amount of houses had been built we would have a shop built, but I think that amount of houses was reached years ago."