CHEPSTOW is one of the towns currently in the sights of fast food giant McDonald’s, with the town identified as one possible location for the burger chain.

McDonald’s is actively looking for 400 freestanding ‘drive-thru’ restaurants in “new or existing retail and leisure parks and transport hubs”. The company say all opportunities will be considered and have revealed Chepstow, along with nearby Monmouth and Ross-on-Wye, as potential site locations.

The restaurant giant intends to increase the pace of new stores, with a target of 30 new restaurant openings per year, creating up to 2,400 new job opportunities annually. Nine locations in South Wales have been identified on their website.

The presence of the fast food outlet has been fought previously in the county. In 2015, Monmouth Town Council recommended refusal for a controversial commercial development on Dixton Road, Monmouth which included a McDonald’s restaurant.

The developers claimed the site was aimed more towards the passing traffic on the A40 although accepted that some business would come from the town. 147 jobs would have been created between the four businesses.

An active campaign was fought by residents and parents who claimed the siting of the fast food chain so close to Monmouth Comprehensive School was not a good idea

Following a public meeting, the application was recommended for refusal by Monmouth Town Council on grounds which included that the fast food restaurant is too close to a school.

The 2013 application (DC/2013/01071) is still current and sources close to the Beacon have hinted that amended plans will soon be submitted for consideration although it is thought the new plans for Dixton Road will not include the more controversial aspects of the current application.

The fast food chain has hired the London-based property agency Morgan Williams to help identify and acquire sites in Wales, but are offering an introductory fee of £20,000 available to non-retained agents.

McDonald’s said: “We are always looking for new sites to open new restaurants, invest in the local community and create jobs.

“Although Monmouthshire has been identified as an area of interest, we currently have no confirmed plans in place.”