SAINSBURY'S have caused outrage among traders and businesses in the Crystal Palace Triangle by demanding annual (51 week) licence fees of £50 per space to park in the outside area at the rear of the store.
The outside parking area of the Westow Street store has always been regarded as a public car park since the site was developed in the early 1980s and Safeway took over the supermarket part of the development which is collectively named Norwood Heights.
But in a letter to various businesses from their head office Sainsbury's say that if motorists do "not wish to take up this offer" then Sainsbury's reserve all legal rights to take action against any non-customer "parking on our property".
The letters led to an article and photograph appearing in the Croydon Advertiser which highlighted the situation.
Crystal Palace and Norwood Chamber of Commerce chairman Frank Lissimore said: "This is a shoppers car park - it says so on the sign. "It's always been available for shoppers and people working in the area for the past 25 years."
Another trader who has used the car park for 25 years said: "It stinks and it's a cheek. "There's nowhere you can park throughout the day and get on with running your business."
A Sainsbury's spokeswoman said: "We are asking the commercial businesses that use the spaces in the car park to pay £50 a year for unrestricted parking for 51 weeks of the year.
"We believe this is good value for money for parking in a safe, well-maintained car park in London."
A Croydon council spokesman said the issue had been raised with the council's estates team but they had been unable to shed any definite light on the matter.
"The best we can get is that we're fairly sure there is nothing to stop Sainsbury's doing what they are doing" added the spokesman
Legal and General, the original owners of the development, are unable to help and Morrison's, the former occupants of the supermarket, have yet to respond.
HISTORICAL NOTE: The site was already being used as a public car park in January 1960 when plans to extend it were mooted (Norwood News Jan 22) following the demolition of Grosvenor House, one of the buildings which formed part of the Royal Normal School for the Blind which occupied the site up to the start of the Second World War.
After the car park - which covered the left hand side of the development from close to where the bus stop outside Sainsbury's is - was extended the Norwood News reported (March 1961) that motorists were refusing to use it after Croydon council started charging drivers to park there.
The Norwood News reported: "During the day motorists constantly drove into the park but promptly drove out again on hearing the charges".
In August 1984 the Croydon Advertiser described Croydon council as 'the major landowner' of the site in a story headed "New Safeway superstore a bit nearer opening".
In February 1993 the Croydon Advertiser, in a story headed "Supermarket to clamp down on all day parking" said Safeway was threatening to wheel clamp motorists who stayed longer than two hours in their 300-space covered parking area,.
"The adjacent public outdoor car park for up to 100 vehicles will not be affected by the plan" the story added.
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