‘Loitering and crime’ fears over new McDonald’s

Plans for McDonald’s to open a third restaurant in a town have caused concerns it will lead to increased "traffic, loitering and crime".

The fast food chain plans to open the premises at the former TGI Friday's site on Gloucester Road in Cheltenham and has applied for permission to serve food and drink from 23:00 to 00:00 every day.

Cheltenham mayor and county councillor David Willingham objected to the scheme saying residents were concerned it would increase crime and disorder.

A McDonald's representative said they were keen to work in partnership with police and they will have CCTV on site.

The premises licence application suggests the restaurant would open from 06:00 until midnight every day of the week, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service..

The fast food chain already has a a town centre restaurant in the High Street and an out-of-town drive-through at the Kingsditch Retail Park.

Mr Willingham questioned the suitability of the plans due to a lack of clarity.

He said while people have raised concerns about potential anti-social behaviour, "there can be no direct evidence relating to this location" as they are not yet trading.

"This presents an evidential challenge to objectors. However, media headlines such as ‘Peterhead McDonald's bans under-18s without adults after 6pm amid rise in anti-social incidents' are indicative of potential issues," he added.

Several residents have also raised concerns about the potential impact on children and traffic.

"The high numbers of people coming and going will inevitably considerably contribute to traffic noise, noise of groups of people and disturbance to residents," one resident said.

Another objector said fast food outlets that operate late into the night lead to increased noise levels, with "idling cars with loud music playing" and delivery vehicles.

"Additionally, there is evidence of loitering and crime increasing around McDonald's restaurants," they said.

McDonald's representatives said they believe their systems are robust and they do not anticipate that unaccompanied children will use the restaurant between 23:00 and 00:00.

"We do however take their safety extremely seriously and will continue to employ the same practices to ensure they are protected from harm at all times when visiting the restaurant," they said.

"This restaurant understands that in extending our opening hours we have a duty to the local community and that we continue to protect our staff and customers from danger and harm," they added.

The proposals will be considered by the licensing sub-committee on 27 May.

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