A decision rejecting plans for a new pharmacy at St James's Surgery has come as a relief to the manager of nearby independent chemist Hawes Whiston.
The surgery, at Northampton Buildings, had applied to lift a condition imposed in 2009 stipulating its annexe can only be used for administration and storage.
It hoped to build an onsite pharmacy for patients needing prescriptions following appointments.
However, members of Bath and North East Somerset Council's development control committee turned down the application, citing access and parking problems.
Councillor Malcolm Lees said: "I'm concerned about highways issues. When I went up there, there was no parking available at all. It's a very narrow road, it's very difficult to get in and out.
"I hear what the applicant is saying, that it shouldn't increase people going there because it's already there, but I don't agree with that because I'm a guy who has to get regular prescriptions and I have to take regular trips to get these prescriptions."
Hawes Whiston, at St James's Street, dispenses around 5,000 prescriptions a month, and also provides drug support services, diabetes checks and emergency contraception.
Manager Simon Medley said the new surgery would have seriously threatened business and he was grateful for the decision.
He said: "Our concerns are that if the other pharmacy moved in we could lose our share of prescriptions from St James's and that would make us unviable.
"There's a threshold of prescriptions we have to reach, it's something like 2,600 items a month. If we don't hit that, we don't get what's called an estimate cost which goes towards the running costs.
"We had the potential to not just lose the revenue from St James's, but also another pot of funding, which would have made the shop unviable and then obviously you have a loss of amenities.
"It's like a village up here, the amount of support we have had from people who don't want us to go and don't want to lose their choice of services is quite overwhelming."
Campaigner Linda Gamblin, of Great Bedford Street, collected 410 signatures from residents against the St James's application before speaking out at the meeting.
She said: "Everyone locally is so relieved. We value this community of shops very much and Hawes Whiston is a central part of it. It plays a big role in peoples' lives.
"It's universally loved, that was why it was so easy to get support."
Dr Sharon Gillings, from the surgery, said: "We are glad that patients will still have the option for a visit to a local retail pharmacy and be able to avail themselves of the services provided there.
"Our aim is to provide patient choice with the convenience of the expert advice of a pharmacist on site."
