A SECOND business has spoken out in opposition to the plans which would turf it out of its warehouse near South Marston in favour of 115 new homes.

Dennis’s Removals & Storage, run by Kevin and Lesley Hutchings at Thornhill Industrial Estate, is one of a number of businesses which would need to relocate in order for the plans to go ahead.

The Hutchings own the land their converted hangar stands on and would need to be negotiated with, if applicants Fallen Oak Properties and Crown Timbers want to achieve their vision.

For Dennis’s, which employs 36 people, to relocate it would need more than a financial incentive, with the difficulty of finding a suitable new home too.

Lesley sang the praises of the high roof in their warehouse, which is used to store customers’ property, and admitted she would struggle to find another structure with the same attributes.

“Its got to be more than market value. Warehouses and sites like this are difficult to find,” she said.

“We are very anxious because we are worried if they build around us it would affect our operation.

“If people move into a house they don’t want to be living next to an industrial unit.

“The offer would have to be high. We need to be able to go in at the same position we are at now.

“We don’t want to be spending out for their benefit. We need to be in the same position we are in at the moment.”

There are presently outline planning applications in at Swindon Council for both the business park and the derelict Crown Timber site to the north of Thornhill Road.

The larger of the two, which would affect Dennis’s and TransXL, which featured in Friday’s Adver, is especially ill-timed for the Hutchings, after they recently invested £200,000 in roof repairs.

They have run the removals firm, which serves the entire nation from its M4 foothold, since 2001, but fear for its future if plans continue to move ahead with the same level of communication as currently exists.

The husband and wife have been dismayed with the lack of contact from either of the applicants or their agent Walsingham Planning.

There was even a recent run-in on their plot of land, when a surveyor turned up unannounced and began sizing the place up with no permission.

“Finding somewhere to move to is going to be difficult. We are right on the M4 corridor, we don’t want to be moving right into the town centre,” said Kevin.

“We are worried about the future of the business.

“They came onto the property to survey it and started measuring it up. It would have been nice to knock on the door and ask permission.”

Neither Fallen Oak, Crown Timbers nor Walsingham Planning offered a response to the Hutchings’ comments.