Councillors will consider the five plans, all recommended for approval, next week.

Five HMO conversions planned in Portsmouth will be on the agenda next week amid fresh wave of objections

Portsmouth City Council’s Planning Committee is set to consider five separate applications on September 9 to convert homes into Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs).

The five schemes, in Fratton, Copnor and Baffins, have drawn more than 90 objections from residents, with common complaints ranging from parking pressure and strain on local services.

Each application will also be tested against the council’s policy that an area becomes “imbalanced” once more than 10 per cent of homes within 50 metres of an application site are HMOs, a threshold none of the five sites is found to breach.

HMOs are, and have been, a contentious issue in the planning committee. With members split on their impact on local communities and those who see them as an affordable living option amid a housing crisis.

55 Byron Road, Fratton

Plans have been submitted to turn 55 Byron Road into a six bedroom, six person HMO.

Nine objections have been received, with concerns raised over the number of HMOs already in the area, pressure on local infrastructure, noise, anti social behaviour, parking and waste storage.

However, planning officers have recommended the application for approval.They found the proposal would bring the concentration of HMOs in the surrounding area to 1.2 per cent, well below the council’s 10 per cent threshold.

Officers also found that all six bedrooms would meet the required space standards.

104 Stubbington Avenue, Copnor

A proposal for an eight bedroom, eight person HMO at 104 Stubbington Avenue has attracted 13 objections.

The plans also include a single storey rear extension and an L shaped rear dormer.

Residents have raised concerns about noise, overlooking, loss of light to a neighbouring garden, parking, drainage and the impact on the character of the area.

Some objectors also questioned the accuracy of the council’s HMO figures, an issue which planning officers addressed in their report.

Officers have recommended approval, subject to conditions and a legal agreement requiring financial contributions to address the impact on the Solent Special Protection Areas.

6 Winchester Road, Fratton

Plans for a five bedroom HMO at 6 Winchester Road have attracted 12 objections.

The application would change the existing two bedroom home into a five bedroom HMO, alongside a rear loft extension under permitted development rights.

Residents have raised concerns about noise, parking, privacy and the cumulative effect of HMOs on the character of the area.

A related application for 20 Winchester Road is also being considered by the committee and has been factored into the HMO density calculations for the property.

Planning officers have recommended conditional approval, with the number of occupants capped at five.

20 Winchester Road, Fratton

The application for 20 Winchester Road has attracted 19 objections, the second highest number of the five schemes.

It would allow the three bedroom property to be used either as a conventional home or a five person HMO.

The proposed arrangement would allow the use to switch between the two for up to 10 years under permitted development flexibility rights.

Residents have raised concerns about the cumulative impact of HMOs, the scale of a proposed roof dormer, refuse storage, parking and sewage capacity.

Officers have recommended conditional approval, with occupancy capped at five people when the property is being used as an HMO.

56 Dover Road, Baffins

The most heavily opposed application is for 56 Dover Road, where 39 objections have been submitted.

The plans would turn the property into a seven person HMO, with extensions done under permitted development rights.

Concerns raised by residents include noise, parking, pressure on local services, anti social behaviour and the standard of accommodation.

The application has also been called in for consideration by Councillor Darren Sanders over concerns about noise disturbance and over intensification of the property.

Despite the strength of opposition, planning officers have recommended granting conditional permission subject to a financial contribution to mitigate the impact on the Solent Special Protection Areas.