UK gym-chain Puregym have submitted plans to transform Aldi’s former Swanfield Place supermarket in Llanelli.
The former Aldi store, next to the historic Buckley’s Brewery building, closed on 27 April with a spokesperson for the store saying that “our Swanfield Place Store no longer meets our requirements.”
Another Aldi store remains in the town at nearby Trostre, although that is around a 30-minute walk away, which a group of local councillors say makes it less accessible for many, particularly the elderly and vulnerable.
Lleidi ward councillor Sarah Evans said: “This is a hell of a blow to those who do not have a car… it will hit the elderly and the most vulnerable the hardest.”
Fellow Lleidi ward councillor and Deputy Town Mayor, Shaun Greaney added: “With rising costs, this shop was a lifeline for those barely scraping by. I don’t know how people are going to manage now.”
Plans for the gym had been submitted to Carmarthenshire Council before the supermarket had even closed.
Puregym operate over 400 gyms in the UK, with other nearby locations including Neath, Port Talbot and Bridgend. The Llanelli gym would be the chain’s eighth in Wales.
The proposal for the former supermarket includes a main gym floor, free weights area and activity studio. Changing facilities and showers are also planned, together with separate staff areas.
The plans will next be discussed by Carmarthenshire Council’s planners.
