A decision on whether a new burger joint can be built in our area could be made within weeks - if it is not pushed back again.
At the start of December, a planning application to construct a Wendy’s fast food restaurant near Swaffham was submitted to Breckland Council.
The council’s planning authority was originally due to decide whether to green-light the Mechanical Digger Ltd proposals by January 29.
However, the decision date has been repeatedly pushed back as National Highways carries out a road safety audit.
The site, off the A47, is located just under three miles west of Swaffham town centre – and lies close to the roundabout junction with Downham Road (A1122) to the north west.
If approved, the Wendy’s drive-thru would be built on a site which currently accommodates the former Avanti Grille Cafe building – which a report says has become “dilapidated and in need of demolition”.
A National Highways comment has now said: “Whilst the proposed development is broadly acceptable, the application requires a Stage 1 Road Safety Audit to be carried out prior to determination of this application… so that any alterations required by the Audit can be incorporated into the proposals.
“Therefore, National Highways’ requests that planning permission is not granted until such time as all issues raised by the RSA Stage 1 Audit are resolved.”
A report on the potential interaction of pedestrians, cyclists and horse riders will also be completed.
The comment adds: “For the reasons set out above, we require additional time to fully assess the proposed development. We therefore recommend the application be not determined before May 31.
“If we are in a position to respond earlier than this, we will withdraw this recommendation accordingly.”
However, this is now the fourth such recommendation that National Highways has made.
It first set a February 2 deadline to do so, and then another for March 14 - with another deadline set for April 24.
It remains to be seen whether the May 31 target will be met.
Breckland Council’s planning portal says that a final decision on the Wendy’s application is now due by July 5 at the latest.
If the plans are approved, the new drive-thru would become the second Wendy’s in close proximity to West Norfolk restaurant-goers – with another opening in nearby Wisbech last year.
The American fast food giant first set up shop in the UK in the 1980s, but left in the early 2000s.
However, in recent years, a number of restaurants have popped up across the country as the chain looks to re-establish itself.