Plans for new 'state-of-the-art' fire station in Cosham take a huge leap forward

Published ahead of the Wednesday meeting of the Portsmouth City Council’s powerful planning committee, it says the Hampshire & Isle of Wight Fire & Rescue Service scheme is compliant with its policies.

'The proposed new fire station will be built in a highly accessible brownfield site in Cosham and is therefore acceptable in principle,' the document said. 'It would meet the needs of the fire service to provide a modern emergency facility for the public good, and be of acceptable scale and design, with acceptable environmental impacts, achieved with the assistance of a range of conditions.'

These conditions include providing more information to the council, before any work starts, on landscaping and tree protection arrangements.

The plans for the former PCMI site in Northern Road, next to land proposed for both a new GP surgery and extra care housing development, propose a three-storey fire station equipped with staff bedrooms, a gym and a 'state-of-the-art' training facility, which includes a practice tower.

'[Fire stations] have to accommodate a number of highly specialised facilities for firefighters and for storage and maintenance of equipment and vehicles,' a statement submitted with the plans said. 'They also house more routine activities, such as offices and staff amenities which should be designed to the best contemporary standards found in other building types.'

The scheme is part of the £27m county-wide ‘station investment programme’, which also includes the rebuild of one of its Southampton fire stations.

Speaking after the application was submitted, councillor Rhydian Vaughan, the chairman of Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Authority, said the project needed to go ahead.

'The existing fire station in Cosham is one of the oldest in Hampshire and the facilities need updating,' he said. 'The site is cramped and no longer supports the needs of a modern fire and rescue service.

'The plans to relocate Cosham fire station present an exciting opportunity to create a purpose-built facility which will benefit our firefighters, the communities that we serve, and our partners.'

Should the committee grant planning permission on Wednesday, the existing fire station will remain in operation until construction of the replacement is completed.