Plans to use a converted shipping container for a pizza kitchen and takeaway in the Bitterne Park Hotel garden go before a council panel on December 14, with officers recommending conditional approval.
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The application goes before the Planning and Rights of Way Panel because “five or more letters of objection have been received”.
The council’s planning portal was down for maintenance at the time of writing, but when council planning officers wrote their report to the panel they said they’d received nine objections, and two representations in support.
Officers said people objected for various reasons, including: concerns over the container’s positioning; delivery services having a possible detrimental impact on safety; anti-social behaviour and noise and disturbance beyond 11pm; and the number of takeaways in the area.
Litter and odours were further concerns.
Officers responded in detail to each of these points in their report.
On the issue of the number of takeaways locally, they said: “The application does not need to identify a need for the proposed hot food take away use. It is also not for the planning process to manage competition between hot food take away providers. The proposal offers the opportunity for a wider choice for consumers.”
The report also noted a comment that welcomed anything to make the old Bitterne Park Hotel financially viable, and which said there are extremely limited food options in the Bitterne Park area.
The panel meets from 4pm on Tuesday, December 14 at the Civic Centre, and the meeting The agenda, with a link to the full report to the panel, is here.