Revealed: how town’s new supermarket will look

An architect's impression of what the new Budgens store in Holt will look like. Picture: Corstorphine + Wright (Image: Archant)

On June 20, Budgens in Holt, which had served the town for more than 30 years, was destroyed by a fire.

The blaze, which was caused by an electrical fault, left the town with no supermarket with the nearest one being in Sheringham, seven miles away.

Now, plans to build a new grocery store on the site of the old one have been lodged with North Norfolk District Council.

The plans, which have been submitted by Gold Markets (Norfolk), the freeholder and landlord of the site, state the new supermarket is being paid for by insurers who have “placed specific conditions” on the replacement.

Aerial photos of Budgens in Holt after it was devastated by fire. Pictures: Nick Bryant (Image: Archant)

The conditions state the building must be a “like-for-like” of the original store, which the exception of any changes needed to meet new building regulations.

If given the go-ahead the developers have also set themselves the “ambitious target” of finished the new store in time for Christmas 2021.

The application states: “Even within the constraints set by the insurers, the new design does seek to improve on the previous building by reconsidering the elements of the original building and refreshing them to provide a new store serving Holt for the future.”

The conditions set by insurers mean the replacement store will follow the same layout as its predecessor, have the same footprint, entrance and exit.

Fire at Budgens in Holt Picture: Lee Smith (Image: Archant)

Changes will include reducing the number of car parking spaces by two but introducing two electric charging bays next to the car park exit and creating 30 more cycle parking spaces.

The most noticeable change will be the materials used on the new supermarket’s roof, which will be covered in metal and will use less timber in a bid to make the new building more fire proof.

Steve Pope, from Berkley Estates London, the managing agents for Gold Markets, said: “We are very conscious of the needs of the local community to see this key local facility reinstated in an expeditious time frame.

“We have worked closely with the other major stakeholders here at Booker/CTB and with local planning officers as well district and parish councillors.”

Fire at Budgens in Holt Picture: Lee Smith (Image: Archant)