An electric vehicle charging point is to be installed in a 200-year-old historic crescent in Brighton after councillors voted in favour of a plan that had divided residents.
The charging point would enable two cars in neighbouring parking bays to be charged at any one time in Hanover Crescent, councillors were told.
Objectors believed that two local by-laws provided legal protection but the proposal won the unanimous backing of Brighton and Hove City Council’s Planning Committee.
The vote on the scheme for the grounds of the grade II listed Georgian crescent took place at Hove Town Hall this afternoon (Wednesday 4 June).
The committee was told that the council’s heritage team had not objected to the plan and there would be “less than substantial harm” to the listed buildings and Valley Gardens Conservation Area.
Councillors were also told that there would be no loss of parking spaces – and trees would be protected during the landscaping process.
The proposal divided residents. Paul Papadopoulos spoke on behalf of objectors, citing two by-laws – the East Sussex Act 1981 and the Brighton and Hove (Hanover Crescent) Act 1985.
He said that legal restrictions in the by-laws protected the gardens and prohibited any structures being built there except a garden shed.
Mr Papadopoulos said that case law required the committee to refuse any application that was against the law.
He said that the electric vehicle (EV) chargers and the concrete base were structures so any work would be in breach of the act the moment that it began.
He said: “They are also, of course, unrelated to gardening. The section (of the act) contains no get-out clauses, no ‘unless the council consents’ or ‘unless planning permission is granted’. Parliament has set an absolute bar.”
He added that there had not been an annual general meeting of residents chaired by the mayor to agree the funding and that this also breached the by-laws.
Martha Turland spoke on behalf of the Hanover Crescent Enclosure Committee which manages the common land for all residents and which submitted the planning application.
She said that 83 of the 110 residents – or 75 per cent – had voted on the scheme in a ballot last December, with 60 in favour (72 per cent).
Residents also backed spending £10,000 from the crescent’s fund to pay for the installation – to be repaid within 10 years.
The six households with a direct interest in the proposal would contribute, with EV users paying access fees, including an uplift on the electricity tariff when they charged their vehicles.
She said: “Swapping our fossil fuel vehicles for cleaner EVs is only possible if we have access to home charging facilities.
“We welcome the initiative to roll out EV chargers but councillors will recognise that residents of Hanover Crescent do not have access to zoned parking so we have to provide that facility ourselves.”
Any future expansion would require just wiring to run to further new posts to serve the 48 parking spaces. Some 42 parking permits have been issued for the crescent.
Conservative councillor Carol Theobald said: “There is a lack of availability of these charging points in the area.
“All in all, I think it’s good to have them and most of the residents seem to want them.”
Labour councillor Joy Robinson said: “Residents have obviously gone through quite a robust process within their own group.
“What’s not to like? They can’t charge their vehicles on the road because they don’t have on-street parking permits to do that. This is the only way they can charge their vehicles.”
Green councillor Sue Shanks said: “You can go somewhere else to charge because EV chargers are not all in residents’ parking bays.
“It’s really good and people want them near their homes so this makes sense.”
Excellent news the only people objecting will be the anti EV brigade. ICE vehicles are and have to go , all streets need EV charging points