Drive-through units could be built as part of new business park

The developer said the jobs ‘will provide a trickledown effect on other businesses’

Two new drive-through units which could create up to 40 jobs have been proposed for a business park in a Cambridgeshire town. They will be next to a planned new Lidl store in Ramsey as part of the wider Ramsey Gateway project which was granted outline permission in 2020.

Consent to display nine freestanding signs and seven illuminated fascia signs was also sought by the applicant, Burney Estates Development Ltd, for plot 9A of the development.

Daren Burney, managing director of Burney Estates, said the company specialises in drive-throughs, with 76 across the country.

He said they hope the project will “regenerate and revitalise the area” and hope to get shovels in the ground soon after a decision is made.

He said: “We don’t cut corners, we ensure our service and buildings are high-quality moving forward.”

A design and access statement submitted by Dovetail Architects said the new units would “utilise under-used vacant land, provide employment opportunities and create an economic boost to the local area”.

They said that up to 40 full and part-time jobs “are likely to be created by the proposals once operational,” adding: “This increase in work force will provide a trickledown effect on other businesses in the area, helping to boost the local economy.”

They said the second unit will house a drive-through restaurant but the tenant is yet to be confirmed. Around 46 car spaces are proposed, including eight charging bays for electric vehicles and five spaces for blue badge holders, and secure storage for bicycles.

Pre-application meetings were held with Huntingdonshire District Council and following this a number of changes were made.

The Starbucks was rotated and repositioned “to ensure primary glazing and active frontages address key views” and “provide a stronger corner feature improving visual prominence and legibility”.

The design of the other drive-through was also changed and a second entrance added “to reflect natural pedestrian desire lines”.

Both units were also shifted north to allow for a “meaningful landscape buffer” and other landscape enhancements to reinforce “the rural edge character”.

The council aims to make a decision on the application before Wednesday, June 17, 2026.