A well-known chain store has been trading against council regulations for more than a decade.
And they have been doing it for so long that there is no action the city can take against it any more.
TK Maxx has a large store at Monks Cross. It turns out it has been flouting a planning restriction for years.
The rule in question bans stores larger than 15,000 sq ft from selling a range of goods – unless they are ancillary to the main range of products.
The goods in question are:
- men’s, women’s and children’s clothing and footwear
- fashion accessories
- watches and jewellery
- music and video recordings and video or CD-rom games
- cameras, camcorders and other photographic equipment
- TV, video and hi-fi equipment
- and toys.
The ruling
This has been the case since the buildings were constructed in 2014.
Realising it had been breaking regulations, the trustees of Monks Cross Shopping Park applied for a certificate of lawfulness from City of York Council.
They also provided plans which proved the store had been trading in this way since at least 2004.
“Whilst the evidence submitted is not conclusive in itself, officers are aware that the unit has been operating as a clothes retailer for more than 10 years,” a report to council planners stated.
Because it was operating outside the rule for so long, the council had little choice but to grant the certificate of lawfulness earlier in December.
So, for the first time in many years, TK Maxx is trading lawfully.
City of York Council were asked for a comment six days before this story was published but haven’t responded so far.
“The rule in question bans stores larger than 15,000 sq ft from selling a range of goods – unless they are ancillary to the main range of products.” So what are the legal items and what are the illegal ones? What is the main range and which are not ancillary – it looks like every TK Max in the country so isn’t everything ‘main range?’