Hertford is set to become a battlefield as the country's two leading supermarkets vie for customers.

For the last twenty years Tesco's only competition in the town has been Waitrose and more recently Marks and Spencer. But now Sainsbury's have bought part of the town's old brewery and are planning a 33,000 sq.ft supermarket on the west of town. This could seriously threaten Tesco's much smaller store to the east of the town centre. As a response, Tesco have floated plans for an even bigger store, twice the size, with rooftop parking and rumours of community facilities. The plans would see the entire Ware Road site redeveloped and a new 44,000sq.ft store surrounded by housing built in place of the current store, which was built in the late eighties.

Both companies have held exhibitions at The Corn Exchange to show off their plans to the public. Sainsbury's proposals have drawn particular criticism because of the limited access for traffic, whilst Tesco's plans have been branded overdevelopment. Other criticisms include the fact that Sainsbury's representatives at the exhibition seemed to have been poorly briefed on the area, whilst Tesco's plans were judged to be a knee-jerk reaction with little detail.

Here's how the plans compare, according to Hertford Civic Society:

Sainsburys		Tesco
New store on the former bottling plant and lorry park on the north bank of the River Lea		Rebuilt store on existing site
Total proposed area 33,000 sq.ft.		Proposed sales area 48,826 sq.ft. Existing sales area is 23,936 sq.ft.
Proposed parking spaces 268		Proposed parking spaces 469 Existing spaces 283
Pedestrian link and footbridge to Bull Plain Regeneration of vacant and unattractive part of town and restoration of listed Victorian brewery 400 new jobs Space for community and commercial uses Landscaping will encourage access to river bank Working with statutory authorities to mitigate traffic impact and scheduling of delivery traffic Additional food shopping and choice		Rooftop parking Mixed use develeopment with homes on Ware Road of up to four storeys 100 new jobs Cafe/retail area to increase community feel Redesign will enhance links with town centre Site is on principle highway network, but needs new access to avoid additional congestion Current store is dated, has limited range and is over-trading

Artist's impression of new Tesco in Ware Road

Tesco have said that the redevelopment of their existing site means that they will have to build a temporary outlet at another location whilst the new store is being built, although they have not been able give any indication where this might be or the timescales involved.

Critics have suggested that Tesco's plans are little more than a tactic to try and limit the size of any new Sainsbury's store, pointing to the lack of detail in their exhibition and the poor quality of display materials..

Whilst the town already has three supermarkets, neither Tesco or Sainsbury's see Waitrose or Simply Food as direct competition.

Sainsbury's submitted their plans to East Herts District Council at the end of January. Tesco's have suggested that they may make a formal planning application for a new store and 50 homes in the Spring.

Plan of new Sainsbury's store

Both plans are expected to face stiff opposition, especially the proposals from Tesco, which have led to the formation of Hertford Residents Against Tesco Expansion. Leaflets distributed outside their exhibition in January questioned the need for a larger Tesco as well as traffic and pollution concerns, architectural issues and the effect on local infrastructure.

Controversial Past

Tesco's current store also caused controversy when first planned. The site was formerly the playing fields of Christ's Hospital school and featured a chapel - a well known local landmark.

Prior to this, the only supermarkets in Hertford were Waitrose, which opened in the early 80s, and a Fine Fare (latterly Gateway) in Maidenhead Street.

There are also two Co-Operatives in the town, on the Sele Farm Estate and in Bengeo.

Have your say and tell us what you think about Sainsbury's and Tesco's plans for Hertford.

More about the Sainsbury's exhibition here.