Residents have said they are 'greatly' concerned about plans to build 52 student flats on the site of a decades-old business in Bedminster.
Paragon Developments has submitted a planning application to Bristol City Council, which proposes to build the flats on the site of Paramount Cars on West Street, a used-car dealership established in 1976. But several residents have raised objections to the proposal on the council's planning website.
Jeff Burridge, who lives on Churchlands Road, wrote: "The proposal concerns us greatly. The area is a quiet residential neighbourhood. Older members of the community alongside young families make up the majority of residents. Having an additional 50 students does not fit well in this area at all."
Read more: Decades-old Bristol business could be demolished to make way for 50 student flats
Stephanie Brammar, who lives on the same road, wrote: "I question the need for student accommodation in a neighbourhood which predominantly houses families, young couples and older retired people. There are already several hundred student rooms being built within the Bedminster Green development on Dalby Avenue." Developers are planning to build 837 student units on Dalby Avenue as part of the vast 'Bedminster Green' housing development.
However, the man behind the West Street proposal, David Fitter, previously told Bristol Live that the plans could help the local area by reducing the number of students living in Houses of Multiple Occupation (HMOs) on residential streets. And he added that he expected residents to be concerned about issues such as parking and noise, but that they would solve these issues by banning tenants from bringing cars and having security on-site to deal with any anti-social behaviour.
But Jennifer Cox, who lives on Brighton Terrace, raised concerns about parking and wrote: "I do not believe parking has been sufficiently considered. Whilst the developers have stated that tenants will not be able to bring cars, I do not believe it will be possible to monitor this, particularly as tenants are likely to park on neighbouring roads such as ours, out of view of the building/cameras/wardens etc.
"We have a young baby, and already struggle to park near our home, having to carry the baby and our bags from streets away is a significant problem for me already, and I believe developers are (naive) in thinking that this would not make the parking situation in our local area worse. We are not within the parking scheme and therefore there is nothing to stop tenants and their guests parking on ours, and neighbouring roads."
However, one resident, Caroline Jenner, said she has "no objections" to the proposal. She wrote: "I am a close neighbour of the site, living in one of the flats at the end of the lane. I have lived here for nearly 17 years. There have been many changes in Bedminster over the years.
"The way people live is constantly evolving. West Street is a very busy thoroughfare for traffic, but also for people on foot returning home from a night out in town.
"It is a lively, noisy street. Local residents are very diverse in age, background and nationality. I do not envisage any problems from a well managed student accommodation complex. The proposed plans for the site look good to me."
