A well-known artist potter who lives in Dunbar says the town can flourish with the proposed Asda development but only if more parking is provided near the High Street.
Margery Clinton is supporting the plan for the new supermarket at Spott Road but is opposed to a tourist information centre being established at the site.
In a letter to the Scottish Executive's Inquiry Reporters' Unit she stated that the store wo
uld add to the variety of retail outlets in Dunbar and attract people from the surrounding area including Berwick and Haddington.
She explained that the town has a few individual shops which might feel threatened by the development but added that there were plenty of reasons for people to visit the High Street.
Ms Clinton, who lives in the High Street, highlighted a "desperate shortage" of parking space.
She said: "If more parking space could be created then traders would benefit from the additional traffic which Asda will bring.
Entered directly"There are still a few possibilities for more parking near the High Street if money can be found and the local authority is persuaded to help the people and visitors to Dunbar in this way."
She listed the following sites which have not yet been built on: east beach, formerly amusements arcade, which is the subject of a planning application for housing; the garage in Abbeylands; the steep backlands behind the buildings on the westerly side of the High Street which is, at present, dead space but could be terraced to provide parking space that is entered directly from the High Street and Countess Crescent.
Ms Clinton is against the positioning of a tourist information centre at the Spott Road site, saying: "The centre of Dunbar is about half a mile away and, provided that adequate parking is provided, both Dunbar and tourists benefit from a tourist information centre in the town."
She added: "The present tourist office on the High Streeet has good landscaped parking outside the nearby swimming pool and it provides a good service."
