Lidl poised to lodge fresh plans for Wolverhampton store

German supermarket chain Lidl is set to go head-to-head with Tesco on Penn Road in Wolverhampton, after unveiling updated proposals to open a store directly opposite.

Lidl had an application to demolish the former Mercure Goldthorne Hotel on Penn Road approved in 2023, but delays to a land deal for the site have held up the scheme for three years.

Meanwhile, the supermarket has continued to discharge its planning conditions for the approved scheme, with landscaping and construction method statements signed off by the council earlier this year.

Now, the discounter says it needs a new application to deliver the “very latest and moist sustainable” store format on the site, and this week published a public consultations on its updated proposals.

If plans are approved, the new store will face onto Penn Road at the junction with Marston Road, with 93 car parking spaces provided for shoppers as part of the scheme.

“The new Lidl store would replace the existing hotel building, which would be demolished following planning approval,” read a public consultation document, published to an online portal this week.

“Residents may be aware that Lidl received planning permission in 2023 to redevelop the site – Since then, Lidl has worked hard to deliver the new store. As some time has passed since the previous approval, a new planning application is required.”

The former hotel on the site closed to the public around five years ago, but remains standing and dates back to around 1890. The original planning application was approved despite a petition from local residents and around 80 objections.

The firm says it plans to submit an updated application to City of Wolverhampton Council next month, with an intended start date for 2027.