Hoarding goes up at site of new Aldi store in Moate

by Graham Dockery

Hoarding has been erected at the site of the planned Aldi supermarket in Moate, suggesting that construction work may start soon on the long-awaited development.

Plans for the €6.8m store were approved in late 2023, although the site, on the Athlone Road approach to Moate, has lain dormant ever since.

However, workers were seen putting up wooden hoarding around the perimeter of the site last week.

When contacted for a comment by the Westmeath Independent, a spokesperson for Aldi said the company did not have "any further update to share" in relation to the construction project.

The supermarket was given the green light by the planning authorities, subject to 15 conditions.

The conditions imposed as part of the planning approval included the payment by Aldi of €47,286 in development contributions towards infrastructure in the area, as well as the building of a pedestrian crossing on the Athlone road, and restrictions on noise levels and working hours during the construction phase.

Aldi has promised to build a landscaped civic space in front of the store, saying this will "significantly improve the existing public realm on offer".

In planning documents the company added that the store would "greatly serve the town and wider rural landscape" by enabling people to "conduct their big weekly shop in the local town rather than having to travel further distances to other settlements for their shopping."