The owners of a Castle Douglas business unit have objected to a new supermarket opening in the town.
Heptagon Portfolio Castle Douglas Ltd, which owns the Cotton Street building used by Wilko, claim Aldi’s proposals for a store on Oakwell Road would breach planning policy.
They have now followed in the footsteps of the Co-op in lodging an objection with the council to the application.
Aldi is looking to develop an area of land currently occupied by Castle Douglas Garden Centre and Martin and Green builders. If planning permission is granted, the £6.3 million store could be open by the end of next year and create up to 35 jobs.
The majority of comments submitted to the council have backed the proposal, although the Co-op and some local residents have objected.
And Heptagon’s agents claim the proposal breaches the council’s development plan as the site has not been vacant or put on the market for sale or rent for at least 12 months.
They also insist that a supermarket would be a “significant intensification” of use of the site compared to what is currently there.
Last year, Heptagon abandoned a bid to remove a planning restriction on the Wilko site that would have allowed a supermarket chain such as Lidl or Aldi to move into the building.
