PLANS to convert a former Beefeater restaurant into a new McDonalds have been greeted with dismay by neighbours who say they are living in fear of flooding.

They fear the arrival of the new Big Mac outlet alongside Newton Abbot Racecourse will make flooding problems worse, and have called on their MP to intervene.

The restaurant opened in 2012 as a Beefeater known as ‘The Grandstand’, but closed in 2024 as one of 238 of the company’s outlets earmarked to be shut down.

The company said at the time that a reduction in footfall had led to some of its restaurants not meeting their targets.

A Premier Inn built around the same time on the site of the former Newton Abbot greyhound track was not affected.

Teignbridge Council is likely to make a decision on the McDonalds application in July.

However, people living near the site are already sounding alarm bells.

Neil Price, acting on behalf of the Newton Road residents, has written to the town’s Liberal Democrat MP Martin Wrigley saying flooding earlier this year had caused hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of damage to homes and properties, highlighting concerns over the capacity and maintenance of nearby drains.

He writes: “Residents are extremely concerned that this additional commercial development will place even further strain on an already inadequate drainage system, increasing the likelihood and severity of future flooding incidents.

“This situation is deeply distressing for the community.”

He says many of the homes have been there for well over 100 years, but have become surrounded by industrial, retail, and food outlets.

“While we understand that towns evolve, it cannot be acceptable for long-established residential properties to bear the consequences of overdevelopment and insufficient infrastructure planning,” he writes.

“Many of us simply cannot afford to spend thousands of pounds individually on flood defence measures such as flood gates, flood doors and flood-resistant windows. We therefore urgently need your help and support in securing meaningful assistance and long-term protection for residents.

“The impact of another flood could be even more devastating than the last, and many residents are now living with the genuine fear that if flooding occurs again, we could ultimately lose our homes altogether.”