'Unsafe' car park refused planning permission

The car park in Northampton was accepting payments despite not having planning permission

The owners of a car park built and run without planning permission have been issued with a refusal notice by a council.

The car park, located near the Grosvenor Centre and the former Greyfriars bus station in Northampton, was briefly opened for public use but was voluntarily shut in March.

East Island Partnership, formerly known as Zone Developments, submitted plans to convert the derelict site into a 55-space car park.

But a West Northamptonshire Council (WNC) planning report said the development was "unsafe" owing to a poor layout and "dangerous" access to traffic and so denied permission.

WNC's highways department objected to granting planning permission in part because it was dangerous for traffic to access the site

The application asking for permission to begin building was only validated by the council in February.

Previously the site was green open space and was used as a public route between Lady’s Lane and Greyfriars.

The Local Democracy Reporting Service added other reasons for the plan's rejection included a "failure" to demonstrate the applicant would not cause harm to "irreplaceable heritage assets".

Complaints were also made by the Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service and Northamptonshire Police, who said the amount of "trip hazards" and debris was "disgraceful".

Planning officers from the local authority decided the benefits were very limited - and planning permission was refused.

The car park was littered with debris from the land clearance