Think of all the novels you've enjoyed, and I'll bet that a number of them are defined by a sense of place – not just defined, but enhanced. Off the top of my head, I'm thinking any one of the Brontë novels, anything by Thomas Hardy, The French Lieutenant's Woman (wonderful for John Fowles' evocation of Lyme Regis, amongst many other things), Sherlock Holmes (Baker Street), Motherless Brooklyn (New York), I could go on and on.
With publication so competitive at the moment, anything you can do to give your work the edge can only be a benefit, so don't allow the setting of your story to be incidental. Try and track down a place that will resonate with your reader and may provide a useful selling point when it comes to publicity. Although it will involve you in a little more research in the interests of accuracy, setting your story in a specific site rather than somewhere generic you have conjured up from your imagination might work hugely in your favour. And you might have a great deal of fun scouting for locations...
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