A proposal to turn Dorrington Gardens car park into a 34-home development will be discussed at a Havering Council strategic planning committee meeting next Thursday (May 8).
A council report reveals that the committee are recommended to grant planning permission subject to conditions, such as when construction should start.
This expected decision is in spite of the planning team receiving 42 objections from residents, and only one letter of support.
READ MORE: Dorrington Gardens car park, Hornchurch plans for 34 homes
Objections included concerns about the impact reducing a public car park would have on local businesses and the “vitality” of Hornchurch town centre, as well as the loss of light and privacy to neighbouring properties.
In response, the planning officer said that parking surveys demonstrate a “significant underutilisation of the existing car park” and that increased population from new homes will “support town centre viability”.
Other concerns were raised about the pressure on the already “overstretched” infrastructure in the area – such as GPs and schools – but the officer’s response was that the “scale of development is modest”.
The application is part of a Havering Council scheme to turn four “underused” public car parks into housing developments.
Submitted by council-owned developer Mercury Land Holdings, the plans would see ten one-bed flats, 12 two-bed flats and 12 semi-detached homes built on the car park.
Other proposed car park developments have been met with backlash from residents, such as the Como Street site in Romford.
