BOURNEMOUTH residents are celebrating the news a car park in Southbourne won’t be built on.

The controversial plan to build four blocks of flats on a Southbourne car park was rejected unanimously at a council debate on March 17, after months of campaigning from residents.

The loss of the parking spaces was among the reasons to reject the scheme along with claims that the flats would be out of character in the area, over-bearing, and would lead to a loss of privacy for some residents in St Catherine’s Road.

Campaigner Lucy Beale said: “I’ve had over 700 likes and messages from people, it goes beyond the crossroads, it spreads out across Bournemouth.

“This is an argument that comes up every seven years, so people aren't just stopping here and accepting that we’ve won, now we’ve got to try and protect it.

“We’ve been contacting the Wildlife Trust and trying to get the gardens made into a conservation area and we’re trying to put the site on the heritage list as well because there’s only three weeks left of that vote and it proves that people want it to stay.

"If people can vote on the heritage list then it will be protected forever and we won't have to keep going through this every seven years because it's a horrible thing to have to do."

Speaking about future of the crossroads, Lucy said: “They said in the meeting that they were actually embarrassed by the state of the car park and that they'd let it get that run down and neglected so they apologised for that, which was nice.

“So I’m assuming with that in mind that they're going to follow it up and re-tarmac it, maybe plant some trees and help us more with the gardens.

"Hopefully they'll put their money where their mouths are but it's been an amazing outcome.”

Dr Francis Owtram from Southbourne Crossroads Action Group said: “With the large increase in staycations and day visits Southbourne Crossroads Car Park/Community Garden is vitally important for the local economy and businesses, physical/mental health, wildlife and heritage, and sense of place and identity.

“Over 600 objections and great support from across the conurbation on community forums indicate the strength of feeling on this issue.

“We thank all members of the BCP Planning Committee who unanimously rejected the proposal on planning grounds.”