A YOUNG South Molton trader has collected more than 500 signatures on a petition against plans to develop the town’s cattle market car park.

Another petition, already signed by more than 800 people, is attracting support at the South Molton Recycle Phoenix shop next to the car park.

There has also been a call for a referendum in the town to help decide whether the development involving a new supermarket should take place.

Megan Poole, 24, who has a stall in the market, gave South Molton’s mayor, Dave Goodman, the petition she collected during the past month with the help of supporters recently.

She hopes the town council will support her petition to North Devon Council.

As she handed it over sShe said: “The main aim is to save our market and we don’t want to lose our car park. The car park gets so full even now. If it changes and there’s not enough space for us to park it will very difficult and a great shame.”

Mayor Mr Goodman said the town council agreed with the wording of the petition about supporting the town’s market, and also that no parking places must be lost.

“Parking is a problem in South Molton. What annoys me more than anything is that a lot of the town’s business people, instead of paying just £1.10p to park in the car park all day, park in places like the hospital for nothing and leave their cars there all day. A lot of people just don’t help themselves.”

North Devon Council is about to sign a deal involving Tesco to alter the whole of the South Molton cattle market park area, to remove the recycling centre (SMR Phoenix), to allow Tesco to build a supermarket in the middle of the site, and to consider closing down the livestock market.

The council considers it’s a regeneration of the town but the plans have stirred up angerry opposition for several reasons.

And the charity, SMR Phoenix, a nationally recognised example of recycling and community support, is raising its own petition against the plans which already has more than 800 signatures. Organisers are expecting this to top 1,000 before it is handed in.

They said the centre has been on the site for nearly 20 years and there is no reason why a supermarket should be allowed to sweep it away.