THE diggers already working on the new Lidl supermarket in Okehampton are not to be ordered off the site — yet.
Opponents of the store were furious that work started at the site before a planning approval notice was served.
But West Devon Borough councillors at their planning meeting on Tuesday voted not to issue an immediate stop notice, instead electing to delegate a future decision to the committee chairman Roger Mathew, vice-chairman Dennis Bater, the borough solicitor and planning officers.
The decision was taken because, unlike at the Marsh Barton site near Exeter where construction workers were ordered off site, planning permission has been granted — subject to certain conditions, set by the Environment Agency, being met.
It was thought agreement was likely to be only days away and therefore that an enforcement notice would be premature and unreasonable.
Cllr Nick Waterhouse, although not a member of the committee, told members Lidl was not 'cocking a snook' at the council, but was constrained by time issues.
'The only effect of (enforcing a stoppage) would be to delay the works and generally cause misery not altogether justified,' he said.
Cllr Jayne Hill said that any delay to Lidl was not the concern of the committee and the fact remained that the company still did not have planning permission.
'At this moment, and for three weeks, Lidl has not had that crucial piece of paper.
'Therefore they should not be digging up that land,' she said.
The council's head of planning and development Stephen Gill agreed the company did not have full planning consent but said it was open to question whether development had yet reached the stage where action could be taken. And he said the delay was not Lidl's fault — the company had been pressing to reach agreement.
The resolution to delegate a future decision means if agreement were not reached, or the development progressed much further, then an enforcement notice could be issued very rapidly.