Fast food chain McDonald’s is appealing against Bristol City Council’s rejection of its plans for a restaurant on Fishponds Road.
The anti-McDonald’s campaign group in Fishponds said it was not the news they wanted, with just hours to go before McDonald’s deadline to appeal ran out.
They said it was “time to regroup” and understand what the next steps were in the fight against plans for a Drive-Thru on the old tile warehouse site.
City councillors rejected the scheme in February on highway safety grounds.
Today a McDonald’s spokesperson told The Week In: “After careful consideration we can confirm we have decided to appeal the decision made at committee.
“We believe opening a restaurant here will see positive investment in the area, create new jobs and demonstrate our long-term commitment to Bristol.”
There had been protest marches and rallies against the plans for a two-storey restaurant in the largely residential area and a 1,699-name petition was submitted along with some 500 individual objections.
Concerns were raised about road safety, disturbance, air quality, litter, noise and odour, and the health impact on young people as there are several schools nearby.
McDonald’s said the restaurant would have created 65 new jobs and brought significant investment to the area.
