We have been receiving a lot of queries about what is happening with the two major redevelopment schemes in Oxted Town Centre - the gasholder/Johnsdale car park site and Ellice Road car park.
OLRG's Councillors attended the Strategy and Resources Committee meeting on 27 September 2018 to get answers to these questions and we now have the following information:
1. The demolition of the Oxted gasholder, scheduled for this autumn, is expected to be delayed because of a judicial review launched by a local resident. The resident is asking a judge to quash the planning consent given for the Johnsdale car park because it contains no affordable housing.
The Council sold the car park to property developers St William early this year for £750,000. St William were subsequently given planning permission to develop it together with the gasholder site for 111 flats.
2. A new planning application for a multi-storey car park on the Ellice Road site in Oxted is going before the Planning Committee next Thursday, 4 October. The Council was unable to proceed with its original design, for which it gave planning permission in April, because of the cost of meeting fire regulations and the need to build foundations under neighbouring land, highlighted in a report from car park experts.
We understand the cost of the new scheme has increased from £2.5m to £3.9 million. The Council intends to borrow around £3million from the Public Works Loan Board to pay for it with the rest coming from the Coast to Capital Local Enterprise Partnership.
Building work is scheduled to start in January 2019. The Council says the new car park will have 297 spaces compared with 176 currently - most of the new spaces will be for permit holders with about 20 additional shoppers' spaces.
If you have any other questions, just get in touch at oxted.residents@btinternet.com and we will try to supply the answers.
