AN ABANDONED brownfield site currently used as an unofficial dumping ground could be given a shot in the arm if a state-of-the-art health centre is given the green light. Plans have been submitted to Denbighshire County Council to demolish the existing structures and construct a three-storey building on West Kinmel Street, Rhyl. It will include offices and a pharmacy, as well as the usual medical facilities. Developers hope that the proposed new centre will serve the local population, as well as people from Prestatyn and Dyserth and a small number who will travel in from Kinmel Bay and Abergele. Councillor Mark Webster is delighted with the proposals. "I think it’s a brilliant idea and it’s got to be better than the dump that’s there at the moment, I just hope it’s accepted," he said. "It’s definitely needed as the Clarence House surgery needs larger premises and the Government is pushing for surgeries to be open at all hours. "It will be brilliant and it’ll be on the doorstep of the people who need it." The Clarence House surgery has almost 16,000 registered patients which are augmented by holidaymakers in the summer season. It is close to capacity. Two previous attempts to develop the former Bel Market site as flats and other residential developments were abandoned in 2000, and since when no other planning applications have been submitted and the area’s deterioration has continued. "At the moment the site is just being used as a dumping ground and a place for used needles," said Cllr Webster. "The junkies and alcoholics sit there on the wall and throw their needles on the ground – it’s a disgrace. The health centre has got to be an improvement." The application is classed as delegated and will not go before Denbighshire’s full planning committee, instead approval will depend on the county’s planning officers. A decision is expected within the next few months. | 
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