9 July 2026
The application is for an extraordinary amount of accommodation which bears no resemblance to the designs that were the subject of public consultation last year. It will destroy what remains of the town centre and miss a generational opportunity to improve Spring Gardens. I assume that this is a 'softening up' application which the developer knows will fail but is hoping will make an application (for much more accommodation than the consultation suggested) seem acceptable. However, such underhand tactics should lead HPBC to seriously question the intent of this developer and whether it will be able to control it, should permission for any development be granted.