Hopes fade for parking talks

Efforts to secure off-street carparking for residents in Southwell town centre look unlikely to succeed in the near future.

Southwell Town Council hoped to open talks with Newark and Sherwood District Council, the owners of the King Street and Church Street carparks, over the possibility of residents buying their own spaces.

However, the district council said the idea would work against its aim of providing a regular turnover of short stay spaces for shoppers and tourists.

Charges were introduced at the carparks in May, ending the free long-term carparking that many residents and traders, who do not have their own off-street parking, relied upon.

A town councillor, Mrs Beryl Prentice, said the carparks were not full and a residents’ parking scheme would get cars off the roads.

“It is very frustrating for the residents and it is not good for the town to have all that parking on the roads,” she said.

Since the introduction of charges, residents in King Street and Queen Street, along with shoppers and traders, have been parking on the streets around the town centre.

Burgage and Burgage Lane have been worst affected.

A King Street resident, Rachel Thackray, said it was upsetting other residents.

She said the result of the charges had produced the reverse of what carparks were intended for — to take cars off the streets.

She said the Church Street carpark seemed to be operating as it was before the charges, but King Street was far less used.

“The King Street carpark is a little known carpark anyway and traditionally always used by traders and residents,” she said.

“It is now very, very seldom used.”

Rachel Thackray said she regularly checked the carpark and it was often only a quarter full.

“Spaces are standing empty when they could be better utilised by residents and traders,” she said.

She said she was delighted that the town council wanted to work with the district council over a residents’ parking scheme but felt any permit should be free, if possible.

She said residents also felt for traders affected by the charges.

“We want to keep Southwell as an attractive market town where people want to come and spend money. We don’t want empty shops,” she said.

Another King Street resident, Mr Tony Byrne, said parking was not now as convenient as he would like it to be.

“I can live with it but the inconvenience could be got rid of I think,” he said.

He could not see why residents were not allowed to have spaces in the King Street carpark as it was often empty.

Newark and Sherwood District Council’s community services manager Mr Jim Besson said: “All carparking charges are reviewed annually, which is when any alterations to the use of carparks could be considered.

“Any formal suggestions about introducing resident permits to the carparks in Southwell would need to be considered by the district council’s cabinet.

“However, the current regime seems to be meeting its aim, which is to provide a regular turn-over of short-stay spaces for shoppers and tourists.

“Making changes to replace short- stay spaces with long-stay residents’ parking would work against this aim.”