Plans to open a new Lidl supermarket in Stevenage look set to take a step forward next week after council planning officers recommended that councillors grant planning permission for the development.

Lidl wants to demolish an existing building on Maxwell Road and replace it with a new supermarket and car park.

Part of the site, at the junction of Gunnels Wood Road and Fairlands Way, was previously used by the Furniture Industry Research Association (FIRA) but is currently empty. The rest of the site includes a two-storey office block, an empty vet's and car parking. 

The new supermarket would be 2,173 square metres, including 1,516 square metres of retail space. Vehicle access would be from Maxwell Road, with a car park of 108 spaces provided. Pedestrians would be able to access the site from the segregated cycleway and footpath on Gunnels Wood Road. 

The local flood authority has objected to the application "on the grounds of increased flood risk", according to a council report.

The report adds that "significant progress" has been made by Lidl in addressing the points raised by the flood authority, though updated feedback from the flood authority has not yet been received.

Beams, acting as a heritage consultant for the borough council, said it is "highly regrettable" that the FIRA building, constructed in 1964, would be demolished to make way for a car park. They said: "The FIRA building is not statutorily listed but is nonetheless of considerable architectural and historic interest."

Planning officers found that only eight full-time jobs are currently supported by the site, suggesting it is "significantly under-utilised". 

While the supermarket would not be in the town centre or a neighbourhood centre, officers concluded that alternative sites in those locations would not be available for Lidl to use. 

The report prepared by officers said: "The proposed development would deliver a number of clear public benefits.

"It would provide approximately 40 full-time equivalent jobs and would contribute towards meeting an identified need for convenience retail in the borough."

They concluded that the drawbacks of the proposal – some diversion of trade from the town centre, loss of designated employment land and limited harm to heritage assets – would be outweighed by its benefits.

A final decision on the plans will be made by the Stevenage Borough Council's planning committee on Tuesday, December 2.