New restaurant and flats approved for Southsea food capital Albert Road despite prison "cell" bedroom

Applicant Mr Ting-On Tsui submitted plans to Portsmouth City Council for converting a former printing shop on 63-65 Albert Road into a restaurant/takeaway with accommodation and a terrace on the first floor.

The proposed restaurant will include a bar, kitchen, and seating, operating from 11am to 1pm on Fridays and Saturdays and from 11am to 11pm on other days. The initial plan for the first-floor flat included two bedrooms, one of which lacked a window and relied solely on a skylight.

NOW READ: Major city centre redevelopment given green light

Councillor Hugh Mason gave a deputation on behalf of local resident Oliver Hounslow, a serving officer on the HMS Queen Elizabeth.

He said: “Albert Road is becoming saturated with restaurants and takeaways and this unbalancing the road which is mixed-use.

“Many of these restaurants are not doing well, the response to the pressure on restaurants is that they’re moving to late-night openings. There is already one which is open to 3am and another one to 5am.

“In general he feels that an additional restaurant would be one restaurant too many.”

However, Councillor Russell Simpson argued that restaurants are not uncommon in the area and highlighted the provision of a flat, indicating that members should be “jumping” to approve the scheme.

In response, Councillor Gerald Vernon-Jackson emphasised the importance of ensuring habitable living conditions, saying, “I used to lock people up on life sentences for a living and none of the cells that we had didn’t have a window.

“Now we are proposing to allow a bedroom with no window, just a skylight, our job here is to make sure we’re not creating the slums of the future.

SEE ALSO: New vegan cafe Offbeet takes Albert Road by storm

“The idea that we could give permission for a flat with a bedroom where we are solely lit from a skylight is a terrible precedent – once you say yes they’ll be queuing up.

“I’m very happy with the restaurant – but on that issue alone I’m going to say no.”

Ultimately, councillors approved a condition requiring that the enclosed bedroom be designated for non-habitable use, along with storage rooms.