*** DEBUG START ***
*** DEBUG END ***

OHP Sisters’ Tesco plan collapses

by
11 November 2010

by Nigel Burnham

PLANS for a £40-million Tesco eco-store and 93 affordable homes, on land owned by a community of An­glican nuns in Whitby, collapsed last week, when the developers withdrew their appeal against the council’s rejection of the scheme (News, 2 July).

The development — which would have included a 340-space car park, a petrol station, and care facilities for the elderly — would have been built at High Stakesby, under a deal with the Sisters of the Order of the Holy Paraclete (OHP), who live near by in St Hilda’s Priory, Sneaton Castle.

The Sisters want to build a new, smaller home because their current one is too big for their needs.

The scheme, by the developers S. Harrison, based in York, provoked widespread opposition in the town and a 3700-signature peti­tion. A pressure group, Whitby Resi­dents Against Tesco Superstore (WRATS), said that the proposed supermarket would destroy the character of Whitby.

The nuns have faced sustained hostility over the scheme, and could not be contacted for comment. Earlier this year, the Prioress of St Hilda’s, Sister Dorothy Stella, de­fended the Order’s plans as an attempt to help the town by pro­viding more facilities.

Browse Church and Charity jobs on the Church Times jobsite

Forthcoming Events

Women Mystics: Female Theologians through Christian History

13 January - 19 May 2025

An online evening lecture series, run jointly by Sarum College and The Church Times

tickets available

 

Festival of Faith and Literature

28 February - 2 March 2025

tickets available

 

Visit our Events page for upcoming and past events 

Welcome to the Church Times

 

To explore the Church Times website fully, please sign in or subscribe.

Non-subscribers can read four articles for free each month. (You will need to register.)