Decision over Royal Clarence Yard flats delayed because of parking fears

Councillors sitting on Gosport’s regulatory board deferred a decision being made over the properties at Royal Clarence Yard until this Friday.

Developers Berkeley Homes had submitted the application for the 55 properties and were expecting to get a decision last week.

The plan included 12 on-site parking spaces and 43 permit-only spaces using unallocated parking in another section of Royal Clarence Yard.

But worries over how much parking would be available for all saw councillors vote to delay the application until they got more information.

Labour councillor Dennis Wright said: ‘It is unclear in the application what parking there already is at Royal Clarence Yard for visitors and what is for residents. The plans will take unallocated parking for North Meadow and turn that into permit-only parking.

‘But what affect will that have on North Meadow?’

The vote to delay the application was unanimous.

In August, councillors agreed a new car park management plan in the hope it would boost development at Royal Clarence Yard.

It featured 55 flats – which was originally for 78 flats – and included parking.

It was said by officers that because the car management plan had already been agreed, there was little councillors could do regarding the parking provision for the new application. But Royal Clarence Yard resident Steve West asked if underground parking could be considered.

He said: ‘The developer could have looked at getting the extra off-site spaces from undercover parking but it didn’t. Undercover parking will make the flats more financially attractive to buyers.

‘It would also mean there was more visitor parking at North Meadow.’

But Olivia Forsyth, from Berkeley Homes, said the reduced housing numbers will help. ‘The reduction will reduce traffic and parking demand for the site,’ she said.

‘We could still decide to go ahead with the seven-storey building as we have planning permission for it.’

A decision will be made at an extraordinary regulatory board meeting at 5pm on Friday at the town hall.