A BLACKBURN-based property developer has submitted plans to build a new retail unit in Mellor Brook.

The single unit development would be erected on land adjacent to Myerscough Smithy Road if the plan is approved by Ribble Valley Borough Council later this year.

The application has been submitted to the council by JWPC Ltd on behalf of Leehand Properties.

The retail unit would be used as a food store and would include parking.

In a statement to the council, a spokesman for JWPC said: “Despite Mellor Brook’s status as an important village within the district, it does not presently benefit from a sound provision of basic retail facilities.

“Occupants of Mellor Brook are therefore likely to travel outside of the village for basic food-retail provisions.

“The proposed retail unit will lie within close proximity to the centre of the village and would therefore encourage shopping locally, promoting sustainable communities and the viability of the existing village centre.”