A meeting was held in Burnham-On-Sea on Tuesday (September 15th) to discuss the impact of the proposed closure of the town’s Morrisons supermarket.
Burnham’s Town Centre Manager, a representative from Burnham Chamber of Trade and a representative for MP James Heappey met with Phil Adams from Sedgemoor District Council’s Economic Development Team to discuss the possibilities that are being pursued for the site and the opportunities that this may present.
A Burnham Chamber of Trade spokesperson said after the meeting: “We are greatly saddened by the proposals to close Burnham’s Morrisons store. This supermarket is an essential part of our town centre, providing valued shopping facilities and employment for many local people.”
“We would like to see the site remaining a prime retail location and have this week taken part in a meeting about possible uses for the site and the wider economic context for the town centre.”
Morrisons announced last week the proposed closure of 11 stores across the UK in a cost-cutting move, with Burnham’s seafront store one of those affected.
A petition to save the store, which is online here, has been signed by hundreds of people. Copies of the petition can also be signed at Burnham’s tourist information centre and in the store itself.
A Morrisons spokesperson told Burnham-On-Sea.com: “We have looked extremely carefully at whether our store in Burnham-On-Sea can be turned around but unfortunately we cannot see a way of making it viable. We are therefore proposing its closure. We are consulting with colleagues and unions and we will be discussing how to reduce redundancies and redeploy colleagues around our business.”
