AN axe was looming over Vertigo nightclub this week with a key decision on its future due to have been made last night (Thursday). Developers want to bulldoze the popular Swan Street club and replace it with 14 flats above a bar, dance floor and restaurant. Yesterday, East Hampshire district councillors were due to have made an unpopular decision to give the scheme the go-ahead following a recommendation from planning experts. It would mean the end of the road for the Art Deco building, which has held pride of place in the town centre for more than 70 years. And it would fly in the face of objections to the plan by Petersfield Town Council, residents living next to the site, and more than 300 Vertigo customers. Letters received by East Hampshire District Council (EHDC) included concerns over the size of the new development, lack of parking for residential and restaurant use, lack of disabled access, lack of affordable housing, and noise disturbance. But despite the criticism, Thursday's decision was set to be the last chapter in the long- running attempt by the building's owner to bring a more modern facility to the town. The first unsuccessful application for the plan was submitted in 2005. And when that decision went to appeal, a planning inspector said she had serious reservations about the size and scale of the proposal. Now, planning officers at EHDC say the problems have been ironed out, with the "bulk" of the proposed building reduced and one less flat included in the designs. There have also been amendments to the front and eastern side elevations, and extra bicycle storage has also been created. Provisions for parking, however, was not seen as a planning consideration on account of the building's town-centre location. Last month, EHDC planning officer Julia Mansi attended a meeting of Petersfield Town Council's planning committee to explain the changes. The new building, she said, would be set back from the road to allow "Continental- style" outdoor seating in summer. During the day and evening the complex would take on the form of a restaurant. Later on, it would be transformed to make way for a bar and dance floor. But, at the meeting, members were still unconvinced about the plan and reiterated their fears about the lack of parking being made available at the site, and about noise spilling out through glass-fronted doors. Chairman Mary Vincent said: "I'm still concerned that there's no car parking for the property. We can at least say we're concerned and we should ask whether any underground parking is possible. "We have got more and more flats going up with no parking. What if the people in the flats have visitors?" Chris Jenner said areas around Borough Road could feel the effects of the development as it was the closest place where residents could park for free. He said: "The town is already choked with cars. People may not drive to a nightclub, but they will drive to a restaurant." A decision was set to have been made at East Hampshire District Council's south planning committee yesterday (Thursday). They were due to rubber stamp the scheme subject to the developers making a financial contribution of £13,897 towards the provision of off-site public open space and £13,000 towards alternative transport measures. A restriction has also been recommended to prevent future occupiers applying to EHDC for parking permits in Swan Street car park, or to Hampshire County Council for on-street parking permits. No-one from Vertigo was available for comment as The Herald went to press.
