MORE than 700 new jobs could be created if an office development is built near Weymouth Football Club.

The scheme by the Aldwickbury Settlement plans to construct seven buildings with 309 car parking spaces above ground and another 418 underground on land behind the western divisional police headquarters at Chickerell.

Principal David Lane of agents DLA Town Planning explained that an application for outline planning permission for the scheme had been made to West Dorset District Council planners.

He added: "The development will be primarily for offices, there will be more than 700 new jobs created and clearly this will be a major employment location for the Chickerell, Weymouth and Portland area.

"We have no particular company in mind for the site which will be marketed speculatively to attract someone looking for an office location in this area.

"It is a big-scale development but the site is allocated for employment in the Local Plan and we have submitted our application on the back of that.

"We are hoping to get permission for the scheme granted some time later this year.

"The Aldwickbury Settlement would then look to pre-let the buildings and, having done so, to build them, hopefully by 2011."

The massive development of 243,529 sq ft - more than nine times the area of the Asda supermarket in Weymouth - has already prompted concerns.

Several Radipole Lane residents are worried at poor drainage and a big potential increase in vehicle movements from the site of up to 3,000 on a typical weekday.

They question the need for such an office development and are also concerned about potential road problems.

A spokesman for West Dorset District Council's planning department confirmed that a planning application had been received to build seven units for 'B1 use' which includes offices.

The spokesman added: "This is an application for outline planning permission only and as such its proposed use meets what the land is allocated for in the West Dorset Local Plan."

Weymouth and Portland planning manager Simon Williams said: "Clearly this is a development of some size and significance for Weymouth and Portland as well as Chickerell.

"We look forward to discussing the issues raised by the scheme with our colleagues at West Dorset."

Environment experts have told the council that the site has no known contamination history but that nearby land is 'unknown filled ground' so it needs to be assessed 'to ensure that the end users of the site are not at risk'.

Dorset County Council highway experts say they are aware of the scheme and have established 'a number of areas where contributions towards improvements to the highway network and public transport are required'.

Natural England says it has no objections to the scheme relating to the nearby Radipole Lake Site of Special Scientific Interest although it welcomes an ecological assessment which has been carried out into protected species, a summary of which indicates to them that they have no further objection on this issue.

Wessex Water said the sewerage system should be able to cope with the proposed development and there are enough nearby water mains to service it.