A campaigner keen to save the mature trees on the proposed site of a new supermarket says residents have missed "a golden opportunity to stand up to a big chain".

Aldi has re-submitted its original planning application for a store on the existing Co-op site in Park Street, just a month after planners rejected it.

The German firm said its decision to try again - and maintain the controversial felling of 10 mature trees - came after it was "inundated" with emails and calls from disappointed members of the public.

Now tree campaigner Imogen Jenkins has slammed residents for reacting in such a way, claiming they’ve fallen at the first hurdle.

In a letter to KentOnline, she wrote: “The campaign and resulting refusal of planning permission for the new Deal Aldi was never to prevent Aldi arriving, it was to negotiate a compromise between a large company and a small town.

“And residents of Deal fell at the first hurdle.

“The council’s decision to refuse Aldi’s application was a golden opportunity for us to stand up to a big chain supermarket and we panicked at the thought of losing cheap groceries.

“Do you really think Aldi would have sloped off after this small setback? Of course not!

"They will have invested huge amounts of money into researching where to open a new store.

“As result, they will be convinced that Deal is a good business opportunity.

“We had the upper hand. As a town we could have negotiated for a more sympathetic design that incorporated low cost housing, the retention of mature trees and some meaningful soft landscaping.”

Aldi also stated it had chosen to resubmit the application rather than pursue an appeal.

Ms Jenkins, the Landmark Centre gardener, thinks the town could have set a national precedent.

She added: “As a company, Aldi hails from a nation that is exemplary in its attitude to public planting and green infrastructure and we, as a nation, moan that the continent seems to be much better at looking after its parks and open spaces than we do.

"Maybe the reason that Aldi doesn’t follow the continental attitude to green town planning in the UK is because we allow them not to.

“Come on Deal! Where is your backbone?”

A KentOnline poll asking readers if they thought the application should be approved second time round attracted more than 1,500 votes.

A total of 73% voted yes, 19% in favour of saving the trees, and 8% were undecided.