TESCO plans to build a new collection point at its Great Notley superstore.
The proposal will feature a new collection pod and canopy where customers will be able to drive in and collect items they have bought on the internet.
This will include a van delivery side and customer bay and be placed in the existing car park, taking up ten spaces.
However, Graham Butland, leader of Braintree District Council and a Great Notley resident, has reservations about this extension of the store's capabilities.
He said: "At the moment I have concerns because I need to know more about it and what it will mean if this goes ahead.
"I'm trying to gauge residents' views through Twitter and Facebook. I'm on an evidence-gathering mission at the moment.
"I don't believe they've got this same set-up at Marks Farm, in that it doesn't go through a residential area as it would in Great Notley.
"It would bring a lot of traffic into the area, so I'm really interested in finding out what constituents think."
Mr Butland has already got some feedback through residents' social media groups, with a range of responses.