SUPERMARKET bosses met planning chiefs this week in a last-ditch attempt to prevent the Tesco store in Northallerton store closing for six weeks.

The company is building a bigger store next to its current outlet in East Road. In a similar scheme to its Thirsk development, Tesco planned to open the supermarket in January, then flatten the existing store to provide extra car parking.

But Hambleton District Council's planning officers demanded that the car parking be sorted out before the new store opened its doors, leading to a gap of at least six weeks while the old building was demolished.

High-ranking Tesco's managers met Mr Morris Cann, Hambleton's head of development control, on Tuesday in a bid to shorten the closure time.

Tesco spokesman Mr Shaun Edgeley said: "Part of the planning conditions for the building of the new store was that we had to have the car park completely finished before we could open. The shortest time we could possibly do that in is six weeks.

"We have been talking to the council to see if we could come up with a plan that would enable us to do it in less time and they have been quite receptive."

The revised plans will see the number of available parking spaces at the store kept in line with existing levels while the old site is demolished. This could halve the delay to just three weeks.

Tesco has also leased the auction mart car park for staff during the building work, freeing around 40 spaces at the supermarket for customer parking.

Mr Morris Cann confirmed that the time between the closing of the old store and the opening of the new one could be halved.

"Somewhere along the line we have to be pragmatic," he said. "The store needs to be open for people to shop, but at the same time you need parking places or you will end up in chaos, especially in a town like Northallerton.

"The scheme we have come up with now should keep everybody happy."

Mr Cann said he would consult the town council and chamber of trade over the proposed changes. The revised plans could be agreed next week, subject to approval by North Yorkshire County Council's highways division