Plans to demolish the Old Kent Road branch of supermarket giants Lidl and replace it with a bigger store with more parking spaces have been put back on the shelf by Southwark Council planners.
The proposal was rejected by officers, who said that the plans did not “optimise the level of development on the site.”
It also criticised the “lack of an active frontage onto Old Kent Road”, with customers accessing the store via a moving walkway.
The application proposed a two-storey building, with the store itself on the first storey and parking at ground level.
However, the number of parking spaces, which would have increased from 45 spaces to 92, was described by officers as “overprovision” given the area’s public transport facilities.
Earlier this year the council urged the chain to reconsider its application, making more effort to provide other services at the site, including housing.
However, the chain engaged in no further discussions before re-submitting the latest similar application.
A spokesperson for Lidl said: “Whilst we are of course disappointed with the decision we are, as ever, committed to creating an improved shopping experience for our customers, in line with our store expansion ambitions, and will thus be reviewing plans in due course.”