A HIGH street supermarket has signalled its desire to revive a prime site which was once abandoned by Tesco.

Discount giant Aldi is understood to be interested in taking over the site in New Scotland Road, Nelson, which was a Tesco supermarket until 2010.

Councillors have declared the adjacent borough-owned Goitside car park surplus to requirements after hearing a major supermarket was interested in the site.

Under discussions outlined at Nelson Area Committee, the supermarket wants to acquire the leasehold for the car park from the council for £100,000 and buy out Tesco’s lease with landlords Shirestates.

One factor in the negotiations is that Tesco is still paying rent to Shirestates until at least January 2021, despite closing their store.

Cllr Eileen Ansar, who runs Paris in Scotland Road, said: “It could be argued that this would bring more shoppers into the town centre.

“But some traders will feel that people will pull up on the car park, complete their shopping and then drive away, without it bringing any benefits.”

Cllr Joe Cooney, leader of the Conservative group on Pendle Council, said: “The site has been empty for some time and is a real eyesore coming into Nelson.

“We know that Nelson town centre has had its difficulties and we cannot turn down this kind of opportunity.

“Hopefully this may lead to more people coming into Nelson and finding out what else it has to offer.”

If the supermarket deal went ahead, agents for the chain have indicated that they would still allow all shoppers to use the car park on a short-stay basis, in a similar arrangement to other towns where it currently operates.

However Pendle MP Andrew Stephenson said it would be preferable if the Goitside site was considered for redevelopment as part of a Pendle Health Village concept, also incorporating Lancashire Care’s Pendle House and the nearby Pendle Community Hospital.

Mr Stephenson called on Nelson councillors to draw up proposals to regenerate the land through the likes of the Growth Deal, rather than releasing it for retail.

But Cllr Mohammed Iqbal, the leader of Pendle Council, said: “The health village concept was examined by the county council but had to be abandoned after Mr Stephenson’s Government withdrew Supporting People funding.”

The original proposals had only considered land around Bankhouse Road for the prospective complex, rather than the Goitside site, he added.

In a council report Dean Langton, the council’s strategic director, said that Goitside had been identified by an unnamed supermarket group after they had conducted a search of potential sites in the area.

He told councillors that Lancashire County Council also retained interests in smaller sections of Goitside and negotiations were underway to transfer the assets to Pendle Council.