Plans that will see an Aldi supermarket come to St Ives were approved on Monday by councillors.

The retailer applied for planning permission for a 1,7844sq m store in Needingworth Road in August last year, and the proposal was approved at the development management committee meeting.

Councillors gave the approval on condition that the developer provide a contribution of up to £170,000 for the provision of a toucan crossing on the A1123.

The store will be built on land which was formerly part of the England Chicory Ltd factory and will employ the equivalent of 50 full time members of staff. There will also be a 126-space car park.

Huntingdonshire District Council deferred the application last year as councillors said they needed more data regarding the traffic movements around the double roundabout system in and out of the proposed site.

At Monday’s meeting, councillors also insisted that work should start within three years.

In its planning statement to the committee, the German retail giant said: “Our proposals strive to produce a design which does not try to replicate existing buildings or styles but is a more innovative and distinctive design of a high standard, making a positive contribution to the visual quality of the environment, as well as regenerating the site with a development that fits both visually and functionally into the surroundings.”

Further retail units are already in place to the south-west of the application site, with McDonalds, Subway, and Costa, as well as a further unit currently under construction.

Aldi will be the third major retailer to submit plans for stores in St Ives, with McDonalds and Morrisons having opened earlier this year.