WAITROSE and Tesco have both expressed an interest in the scheme for building a food store on the car park at the rear of the Town Hall in Abergavenny.

Plans have been drawn up by the Abergavenny Development Forum to redevelop the Brewery Yard site, which has access from both Market Street and Lion Street.

These have been presented to members of Monmouthshire county council, and forum members now want to hold an open discussion with townspeople.

They have drawn up the scheme as an alternative to redeveloping the adjacent cattle market site with a giant superstore. It was widely rumoured that Tesco would be the front- runners for this site.

Forum chairman David Haswell, former Gwent county architect, said: "The informal interest expressed by Waitrose and Tesco is confirmation that the site may be viable for a food store of around 20,000 square feet.

"The developer would be expected to allow the Tuesday stall market to continue on the parking area, and our calculations suggest that, with the site being extended, the stallholders would have more space than they do at present."

Forum secretary David Brancher said: "Waitrose have gone one step further. They are co-sponsors, with Boots and other retailers, of the Civic Trust's Centre Vision project, which is concerned with protecting town centres against out-of-town retailing.

"Through their involvement in the project Waitrose has commissioned a study of the regeneration and investment opportunities in Abergavenny.

"We understand that the Civic Trust and Waitrose would welcome an opportunity to present the conclusions to townspeople and councillors.

"Presentations by Tesco or Sainsbury would also be considered if they were on offer." Consultants employed by Monmouthshire county council in 1997 recommended a quality food store for the town's regeneration.

Mr Brancher added: "Development of the Brewery Yard site would avoid the need for a premature decision on the livestock market.

"The foot-and-mouth epidemic has highlighted the dangers of animals travelling hundreds of miles up and down the country, and there is a compelling need for a return to smaller markets."