'Exodus' of small businesses planned at Gosport Basepoint Centre who blast 'greedy' 'underhanded' and unscrupulous' parking charges

Entrepreneurs and customers started being stung by expenses at the Aerodrome Road site last week – before officially being launched.

A lack of signs for free parking, a heavy-handed pricing and implementation model and mounting rental costs are among the reported problems.

Businesses are planning to leave in their droves, including Gosport Plant and Tool Hire.

Owner Andy Bottriell told The News: ‘We feel as though we are being held to ransom.

‘They’ve been very underhanded in the installation and very naughty in the way they are operating.

‘There have also been astronomical rent increases.

‘There is a mass exodus as we speak.’

Gosport Basepoint Centre was set up under government organisation South East England Development Agency (SEEDA) to encourage small business growth.

Basepoint was a charitable company but was bought by Regus, later absorbed by International Workplace Group (IWG).

Parking cameras and signs were installed on the day of the Queen’s funeral, September 19.

Mr Bottriell said despite being told the charges would go live last Monday, visitors have paid beforehand.

The 49-year-old is upset the one hour of free parking is not advertised and has been ‘pleading’ with contractors to use him.

‘It seems very unscrupulous, which says to me they are blatantly trying to rip off customers,’ he said.

‘We’ve got contractors coming in and out in ten-minute chunks.

‘They are all thinking they have to pay to enter the site.

‘Potentially, it could kill our business.’

An IWG spokesperson said the first hour is a ‘grace period’ so people can register for parking.

They added: ‘This is usually only 15 minutes – like most public car parks – but we have extended this as customers at our centres sometimes have large deliveries.

‘This is not advertised to the public as it is designed to assist Basepoint customers and their visitors.’

Business owners have been putting up cardboard signs to warn people not to pay during fleeting visits.

They were taken down by site management.

IWG said they were removed because they do not ‘follow house rules’.

Owners can secure guaranteed parking spots for £75 a month each.

There are currently no markings to assign them.

Mr Bottriell said entrepreneurs at an IWG site in Southampton are finding paid spots taken by visitors.

‘I can’t get in or out of my van if I’m in a central spot between two cars,’ he added.

‘I might end up paying for something I can’t use.’

IWG said a client inventory is being passed to Your Parking Space (YPS) to secure them.

With extra rent and parking, Mr Bottriell estimates an expense increase of 25 per cent.

Other businesses are struggling to survive, including Tammy’s Dog Training.

Lyn Dubois said: ‘We’re small businesses and they’re just pricing us out.

‘I’m getting very stressed. If I stay at Basepoint, the business won’t work.

‘Without the dog training, I don’t know what I would do.’

Ms Dubois added her customers will end up clock watching during 45-minute puppy socialisation sessions, putting them off.

Security is also a concern for some.

Mr Bottriell said the site was secured between 8am-8pm with a locked gate.

Now, it is open at night, with a repair ticket being in place to fix it.

With £250k worth of stock on site, Mr Bottriell said his business is ‘vulnerable’ and has been ‘badgering’ management about the gate for months.

IWG said the gate has had some ‘technical issues’, but they ‘are being addressed’.

Ramsey Martin, owner of Advanced Marine Innovation Technology Subsea – trading out of Basepoint since 2006 – said the risk of thefts is among many reasons why he plans to leave.

He is upset that ‘vulnerable’ and elderly patients who use I Talk NHS mental health services on site are susceptible to fines through ‘threatening’ signage.

‘In our workshops, we have attractive metal which thieves would grab and zoom off to the metal people,’ he said.

‘People are getting very panicky. I’m not so sure how long others will last. They are screwing prices sky high.’

Visitors pay for parking via the YPS app.

The payment method proves a problem for Ian Clegg’s customers.

He runs iDeviceFixer, where people get their phone fixed.

The sole trader is also open during weekends when reception is closed, and visitors cannot get help with parking.

‘It’s a money grab from IWG and its greedy,’ he said.

‘As I operate outside hours, some customers can’t even pay if they wanted to. It leaves a bad taste in people’s mouths.’

Mr Clegg is also furious about the app admin fee not being advertised on the signs, and the £100 penalty fine.

‘The signs they’ve put up are fraudulent,’ he added. ‘I may well have lost business already.’

IWG said customers can buy parking without admin charges at reception, and all policies are continually reviewed.

The spokesperson added: ‘As with any car park if you go over your paid for time, a fine is incurred in the same way the local council would issue a PCN.

‘The fees are in line with market rates.’

Mr Bottriell said parking prices, for businesses and customers, are fluid and can go up and down at a moment's notice.

IWG said business parking charges are fixed for the term of the contract.

Steve Rogers, business and sales manager at RAICO, plans to move despite relocation plans taking six months, and said other YPS car parks in Gosport advertises when parking is free.

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‘It’s come in at the wrong time,’ he said.

‘It’s upset the neighbourly feel we had here, and as a matter of principle, we’re looking to go elsewhere.’

Mr Bottriell is looking at paying £7,000 in penalties to move ‘as soon as possible’.

‘I understand the enterprise centre has been sold, but it has always been known,’ he added.

‘At the moment, it’s not very enterprising.’