MULTI-million pound plans to provide a retail and housing complex in Westbury Leigh were expected to be given the go-ahead by district councillors last night.

The application, by Marshgate Developments, includes four shops, 14 homes and 50 car parking spaces at Leigh Park.

The centre would be located on Leigh Park Way and the Western Distributor Road, opposite the new Westbury Leigh Primary School.

The plans were given the support of Westbury Town Council in August.

Cllr Russell Hawker said: "The residents of Leigh Park have been waiting for more than four years for this local centre to be built.

"I am sure all the residents will be delighted to see the new building being constructed and use the new facilities soon."

The plan has attracted considerable opposition from Dilton Marsh Parish Council, which considers it would erode the rural buffer zone separating Dilton Marsh from Leigh Park.

Although the centre would be outside the town policy limits proposed in the draft district plan, the planning officer's report to the council recommends that it is in line with the agreed masterplan and development brief for Leigh Park.

It is hoped that the

position of the centre will encourage its continued vitality, with a footpath link to the school making it easy for parents to walk children to school and

to stop at the shops on their way. Also a frontage on to the A3098 should encourage others to use the facilities.

The number of homes at Leigh Park is due to rise to 1,035 over the next five years and the centre will also be accessed by people living in Westbury.

It is expected that the centre will include several takeaway outlets and a convenience store, a surgery, a religious site and a community centre.