Residents feel 'abandoned' over parking removal

Residents near the former Les Quennevais School fear there will be a shortage of parking

Some residents feel "abandoned" over plans to remove their parking to improve access to a new health centre.

The development is at the former Les Quennevais School in St Brelade, and forms part of the new hospital project.

People living near the development fear once it opens there will be insufficient parking for residents, staff and patients.

Jersey's government has been approached for comment.

Services currently based at Overdale will move to the new facility this summer, to make way for demolition.

Resident Melanie Luce said: "It does seem unfair on the residents to take our residential parking away when this is a residential estate.

"We need a space in the road - that's unavoidable - so unfortunately we're going to have to park outside somebody else's house.

"We don't want to do that - it's not going to make the friendship between our neighbours particularly good, it's going to become a bit toxic.

"We don't mind the hospital at all, we just want to be treated with the respect we deserve as residents."

New parking arrangements will be in place for the new health centre

The Enid Quenault Health and Wellbeing Centre will be open between 08:00 and 18:00 on weekdays, according to planning documents and 146 full-time staff will be based at the site.

There will be 171 parking spaces for staff and patients, including 30 spaces at the nearby sports centre.

To improve access to the site, residents' parking will be removed and parking restrictions introduced on Le Clos Des Sables.

'Chaotic already'

To compensate the spaces being removed, the government has part-funded the creation of new parking spaces outside some homes, but local people feel this is inadequate.

"It's chaotic already," resident Tim Frojd said.

"We are looking for some understanding from the project that we have been taken into consideration because none of us here really feel that at the moment. We feel abandoned."

In May the government concluded a multi-site approach had "significant benefits" when compared to a single site hospital option.

St Brelade Deputy Montfort Tadier is supporting residents and said he is "not sure that they have been fully" listened to.

He said: "I personally think the government are to a certain extent in disarray over the hospital project."

Ministers and the hospital project team are due to meet Les Quennevais residents at a Neighbourhood Forum on 30 June, as part of a series of public engagement events on the plans for multi-site health facilities.

Follow BBC Jersey on Twitter and Facebook. Send your story ideas to [e-mail].