A DEVELOPER wants to build an Asda superstore at Kites Corner on the northern edge of Blandford.

Property Development Partnerships Ltd (PDPL) said the proposed store, which would be alongside Glenmore Business Park, would create around 320 jobs.

Oliver Jones, property communications manager for Asda, said: “While we’re aware of Tesco’s plans to make their Blandford store even bigger, we hope that, given the choice, the local community would rather see a new Asda store at the other end of town.”

The proposed Asda development is for a 2,600 square metre store on land immediately south of the A350 bypass with access from Shaftesbury Lane.

PDPL said it was “moving towards making a planning application by the end of the year” with a hoped for opening date of late 2013.

There will be a phased development of business units, alongside a mid-sized Asda incorporating a cafe and a petrol station.

Tesco has already won town council approval to expand its supermarket at Stour Park from 2,194 square metres to 4,066 square metres.

Stewart Drummond, managing director at PDPL, which is based at Studland, said of the Asda plan: “This is an exciting opportunity to bring new investment to the town.”

PDPL is also proposing a new bus service linking the site to the town centre, Badbury Heights, Blandford Heights Industrial Estate and Sunrise Business Park.

Town councillor Sylvia Hixson Andrews said: “My personal view is that this development would be a good thing.

“There are a lot of people living in that area and it’s just as hard for them to get into the town centre.

“Everything seems to be at the other end of town.”

Town councillor Andrew Pemberton said: “I would probably be against this unless they have very good reasons.

“I think we need to get the town centre retail trade going again.”

Mr Drummond said a new Asda with a limited range of goods and proven demand would be better for the town than an enlarged Tesco.