Plans to bring a vacant York supermarket’s car park back into use with 270 spaces have been dropped.
An application from Foss Argo Developments Ltd to reopen the car park which previously served Sainsbury’s, in Foss Bank, for public use was lodged in December.
Council planning officers stated in a letter to the developer they would take no further action on the application.
The site sits on a raised area between Foss Bank and Agar Street, next to the Foss Bank Car Park which is leased to City of York Council and remains operational.
Sainsbury’s left the site following the store’s closure in January 2025.
The empty supermarket building, which was constructed in the 1980s, and Go Outdoors store are set to be demolished this year.
Seperate plans have been drawn up to build a 1,525-bed student accommodation block on the site.
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Cllr Kate Ravilious, the council’s Labour transport spokesperson, was among those who objected to the bid for a certificate of lawfulness to run the site as a public car park.
She said there was no evidence of a shortage of parking spaces in the city centre and the opening of another car park ran counter to efforts to cut congestion.
Judith Illing, a Huntington resident who wrote in support of the plans, said the site had been a valued place to park when visiting the city centre.
The store allowed people who spent at least £10 there to park for up to two hours.
A campaign to keep the supermarket open was launched in the run up to its closure, with a petition from Labour Guildhall ward councillors garnering 1,450 signatures.
The petition stated the store was vital for residents living nearby.
Meanwhile, plans for a 1,450-bed student block, along with 175 in co-living accommodation, 500sqm of commercial space and landscaped areas, were lodged for the site in October 2024.
Council officials ruled in May 2025 the development, from Argo Real Estate Ltd and the Fusion Group, would require an environmental impact assessment before it can progress.
The site was previously home to a gas works and developers stated extensive decontamination works would be required before they could build the accommodation block.
If plans are approved, the development could be finished by 2030 according to the applicants.
Developers stated their plans would see a brownfield site regenerated to create a vibrant, mixed-use community.
They stated: “This scheme will transform a key site in the city, deliver on the growing need for housing and student accommodation and significantly improve the public realm and local environment.”
Foss Bank Car Park, which is underneath the former Sainsbury’s and is leased by the council, has been excluded from the proposed student accommodation development.
A medieval Jewish burial ground which holds around 5,000 bodies and is beneath the car park, was granted protected Scheduled Monument status by the Government in May last year.
