Plans to build dozens of flats in Brighton will mean the need for 54 extra parking spaces, according to the developer.
Hove company Spurpoint Ltd already has approval to build two extra floors on each of the four blocks at Kingsmere, in London Road, Brighton.
The extra floors will add 54 flats on top of the existing 120 flats on the estate.
Spurpoint now wants to add the extra parking to meet the demand from those who will move into the new flats.
Permission has already been granted for 18 more parking bays but a later application for 36 parking bays was withdrawn after feedback from an official at Brighton and Hove City Council.
More than 50 neighbours also objected to the parking proposals, prompting Spurpoint to go back to the drawing board.
Spurpoint said: “The planning officer raised concerns with the loss of grassed areas to car parking … any new car parking spaces provided must not be at the expense of open space at Kingsmere.
“Concerns were also raised in relation to … the proximity of proposed car parking spaces to windows and the detrimental impact to residents in terms of noise, fumes and light.
“Public comments outlined objections and concerns relating to
- additional traffic
- adverse affects on the (neighbouring) conservation area
- overdevelopment, poor design, detrimental effect on property value
- impact on residential amenity, including noise and restriction of view
- impact on trees and loss of green space
…
“In light of comments received, the application was withdrawn.
“In order to address comments received, the current revised application details an alternative car parking arrangement and is accompanied by parking survey information, parking management plan and revised landscaping details.”
The latest planning application said that the estate currently has 81 parking spaces and 64 garages although it was not clear how many garages were used for parking.
The 54 bays in the application include the 18 which already have planning permission – and four dedicated electric car parking bays with recharging points.
The proposal would include felling half a dozen trees and a shrub, including a yew, oak, holly, laburnum and a couple of silver birches.
But some new trees may be planted – along with efforts to encourage people living at Kingsmere to use Brighton Bike Share bicycles and car club vehicles. The nearest car club bay is about 500 yards away.
Spurpoint said: “Cycle store facilities are available on site. The existing unit provides 28 Sheffield stands and wall docks.
“More recently, (the council) has approved an additional cycle store to provide 28 Sheffield stands.”
The site is next to St Bernadette’s Catholic Primary School which has more than 200 pupils and is rated good by the official watchdog Ofsted.
Residents have already started to object to the latest proposal, with one saying: “I strongly object to this proposal. Being a resident on this estate, the last thing we need is more parking spaces.
“Traffic can already be heavy here due to deliveries and school parents using the estate as a parking lot.
“In addition, we have few green spaces and removing the largest one to accommodate concrete makes no sense when it comes to preservation of green spaces.
“In addition, the flats who will now get parking spaces directly in front of their flat windows will suffer from further noise and pollution.”
And a neighbour wrote: “I wish to object about these proposed plans. It would be unfair to remove the green space that is on the estate to make way for further parking spaces.
“There would be pollution and noise from additional vehicles, and residents would be affected whose flats would face on to these parking spaces.
“The estate is not big enough to cater for these extra parking spaces.”
Spurpoint, of Palmeira Mansions, Church Road, Hove, was founded in 1979 and is run by David Stoner, 82, and Annabel Stoner, 56.
The company is owned by Anstone Securites, which is registered in Jersey, and is believed to be owned by the Stoner family.
To read more about the planning application or to comment, visit the council’s website and search for BH2021/03706.
Er, this is a typical builder’s dodge, to get permission for one Application and then say, “sorry folks, we had overlooked this”. If they were competent, they would have envisaged this purported need to tarmac the grass and said so at the outset.
These continued attempts to destroy the urban grain are troubling. It looks to be one law for their Palmeira Mansions and another for Kingsmere.
Reminds me of how Green councillors implement traffic schemes in the city, or manage weed removal, maintenance, rubbish and recycling.
If only certain political parties in the city weren’t hell-bent on making it utterly miserable to travel by any means other than a car.
Or one proscriptive political party that is convinced cycling and dedicated cycle lanes are the only transport option anyone could possibly need.
And the Greens want to make it miserable for anyone that needs a car. Great if you live and work in the city, can cycle, and rarely go elsewhere.
The location of that building is convenient for buses and Preston Park train station as well as cycle routes. With illegal pollution levels and terrible congestion in the city we either need to keep population density the same or improve public transport; there is no more space for more roads in the city. Replacing all the diesel buses with electric (only Big Lemon has electric buses) or a tram system will benefit air quality.
In terms of political parties, many need to concentrate on better informing themselves instead of political warfare that is not beneficial to the population of Brighton. I opposed 5-8 London Rd; 3 Labour, 2 Conservative and 1 Green councillor voted in favour of it despite its configuration worsening pollution (all parties were badly informed)
Nice try.
1. Where in the city are emissions at “illegal” levels? Isn’t it mainly by the Clock Tower where there are few cars?
2. What about options for EVs and ULEZ cars?
3. You don’t have practical solutions for those who don’t go to bus or train destinations.
4. B&H Buses are going Hydrogen – not electric. Current ULEZ buses burn diesel.
5. Big Lemon only has solar PV power for 2 of their battery buses. The remaining 16 buses (like trains) run on raw grid mains electricity which is mainly from fossil fuels producing CO2 elsewhere. The remainder of their fleet are still diesel, so the whole operation is not as wonderful as CEO Tom Druitt claims.
‘1. Where in the city are emissions at “illegal” levels? Isn’t it mainly by the Clock Tower where there are few cars?’ Rottingdean, Royal Sussex hospital, Portslade, Lewes Road, New England Road, Preston Circus, London Road, North Street, Western Road, Viaduct Road, Edward St, Wish ward, by the station etc etc. The new diesel hybrid buses are not as many in number as you might expect even on North St, 1 in 7 maybe.
2 – definitely need a city wide ULEZ otherwise the transition won’t happen, there is a live petition, please sign it
3. for those absolutely, use a car, taxi.
4. I don’t think there are any plans yet for hydrogen as far as I’m aware, just talk, brilliant if it is happening but it is new to me, although London is going down the electric double decker bus route (although double decker electric buses are still v. rare world wide). Electric bus will be more efficient, tram even more efficient (and a more enjoyable experience)
5. very interesting, thank you for that, I have been wondering about that actually. Naughty Tom Druitt for sure! Burning anything you get CO2 and pollution (if euro 6 much better but the emissions testing for buses is still lacking in rigour).