THE first Starbucks drive thru in Colchester has opened today, creating 25 new jobs.

The cafe, at the new Stane Park development, in Tollgate, was officially opened this morning by Colchester mayor Peter Chillingworth and MP Priti Patel, whose Witham constituency covers the area.

Dan Smye, manager of the new store - run by Starbucks licensee 23.5 Degrees - said: “We are excited to be opening our brand new store at Stane Park and bringing the Starbucks experience to customers from the Stanway area and beyond.

stane parkStill to come - KFC

"Our team of 25 partners [employees] are excited to start serving the local community and sharing their passion for coffee in a beautiful new store environment.”

It is the first unit to open on the recently- completed Stane Leisure Park, which has been developed by The Churchmanor Estates.

Emma Proctor King, head of communications for the company, added: “It is wonderful after several years of hard work to see the leisure park finally opening and being a success.

Braintree and Witham Times:

"I feel sure that the residents of Stanway will enjoy the additional leisure offer here for years to come."

Bosses from the store’s charity partner, Essex & Herts Air Ambulance, also attended the launch.

MP Ms Patel added: “I am delighted to see the opening of Colchester’s first drive-thru Starbucks here in Stanway as part of the Stane Leisure Park development.

"Churchmanor deserve a great deal of credit for developing this site and for their perseverance in getting this development in place and I was pleased to help them secure planning permission.

"The new local jobs being delivered are welcome and we look forward to seeing all of the developments in this area complete.”

KFC is also set to open at the end of the month and Nandos at the start of November.

Coast to Coast and Bella Italia, which had previously committed to the scheme, have admitted their plans may change.