NEWS of another multi-million pound shopping venue for Trowbridge has received a cautious welcome amid calls for more details on what it could mean for the town.

Parkridge Developments has submitted an outline planning application for a £35m project at the former Wincanton site in Bythesea Road, but civic leaders and residents want more information on the proposal.

At a meeting of Trowbridge Town Council's town development committee on Tuesday, mayor Tom James said: "I am always wary of outline planning applications because, as they say, the devil is always in the detail.

"The site is ripe for development of course and we all want to see it developed but I am worried the timing of the plan coming forward is to try and get in first ahead of other planning applications in the town and I worry it is being rushed and we won't know the detail until it is too late."

Members of the public, most of whom live at the Regal Court retirement home complex next to the site, were at the presentation and raised concerns about extra traffic and intrusion on their homes.

Developers said if outline planning permission was granted they want to start consultation with the public and local authorities and incorporate their needs and ideas into the final scheme. Parkridge's managing director Philip O'Callaghan said: "What we are trying to do with the outline application is to establish the need for a retail-led scheme on this site.

"We would then want to start the consultation process with the local authorities and the public. It is not a case of trying to sneak in the back door before other projects."

John Holmes, from planning consultants Holmes Antill, said: "We have been in discussions with the planning authority for 18 months. "We are fully aware of the other schemes, which already have outline planning permission and we are confident there is room for us all."