Just one large Sainsbury’s supermarket operates in the town centre alongside a smaller Iceland shop in High Street and a smattering of smaller convenience stores across the borough.
The focus has been on Lidl, which won planning permission to build a supermarket on appeal after Brentwood Council rejected its initial plan on the grounds that it would have an “unacceptable” impact on traffic.
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The council was even ordered to pay costs after the German budget supermarket chain successfully appealed and won permission to develop the site in Wates Way off Ongar Road into a food store and 46 residential flats.
But after Lidl’s fight for permission, the construction of the new supermarket has yet to begin.
The council has said it received notification from Lidl that building work will start before the end of 2025.
A statement as part of a council document on supermarket provision in the town said: “An application by Lidl was approved at appeal in early 2023 for the store and car park, plus some residential development.
“Lidl have since informed the council that they will be starting the development of this store later this year.”
