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Pub numbers bearing up

Published on Monday, 10th December 2018

 

It might not always seem like it, but the pub trade is bearing up better in Portsmouth than in most of the country. 

 

New figures from the Office of National Statistics document the decline in pub numbers, with numbers nationwide down by about a quarter since 2001. In Portsmouth, pub numbers have fallen from 210 to 150, although employment has remained stable at 1750 as new, larger premises have come on line and as kitchen jobs have been created as more pubs sell food.

 

These figures show Portsmouth has 7.0 pubs per 10,000 people. This is well above the national average of 5.8 and compares favourably to neighbouring districts: Gosport has 4.6, Fareham 4.3 and Havant just 3.6. Southampton also scores badly, with just 100 pubs, for a rate of about 4.

 

While a lot of premises have closed over the last decade, things are showing signs of levelling off, with numbers being broadly stable over the last five years.

 

A large student and young adult population, combined with comparatively low property prices and an inflow of people visiting the city at night and for events are part of the explanation for Portsmouth’s relative success. 

 

The report is online here

 

Tags: Pubs

Botched residents’-only schemes to bring new parking problems

Published on Monday, 29th October 2018

 

The LibDems that run the City Council have formally decided to reintroduce two residents parking schemes, both of which caused widespread problems when they were in place five years ago. Between them, the two areas cover most of the area between Albert Road and Goldsmith Avenue and out to Francis Avenue. These schemes were taken out by the Conservatives because of the knock-on problems they caused elsewhere, but now they are coming back and in essentially the same form as before. This is not a good idea. 

 

The inevitable consequence of this will be the gradual extension of residents’ restrictions across the whole of Southsea as people in area after area become irate at being made the dumping ground for surplus cars from miles around. The real choice is between leaving things as they are or bringing in restrictions across a wide area. To pretend otherwise is to deny reality.

 

Instead the council is sticking to the line that somehow it is democratic to let people vote to move the student cars out of their streets and into someone else’s. It’s also expensive. First permits are £30, second ones £100 and third ones £590. There are however plenty of households containing three adults, each of whom needs a car for work.

 

I am asking for the council to look at a wide area scheme. As the existing parking problems in most of the area are less intense than in most of Southsea, punitive charging should not be used for second or third permits.

 

Tags : Parking

Social care grant

Published on Monday, 29th October 2018

 

In recognition of the pressures on Adult Social Care services across the country, the government has made available £250m in extra funding this year to councils across England. Portsmouth’s share is £890,000, which will offset some of the £3m overspend. There is speculation that there may be further help in the budget this afternoon.

 

Tags : Social Care

Lighting in Guildhall Square

Published on Monday, 29th October 2018

 

One of the inevitable consequences of a change in control of the council is that some projects get left unfinished. One, which I particularly regret may now not happen, was to improve the lighting between Guildhall Square and the station.

 

Over the last four budgets, I managed to get £1.6m set aside to do something about the state of the public realm city centre. That is only perhaps a tenth of the amount needed to redo all of it but at least it is enough to make a start. 

 

At the time of the election, I was pushing for new steps between the rear of the Civic Offices and Guildhall Square, removing some of the ramps facing Isambard Kingdom Brunel Road and installing some extra lighting. For about £300,000, that could have included a sophisticated projector system that would have allowed videos to be beamed onto a cut-out of the Guildhall. The effects can be spectacular – see here for an example . This could have benefited the late night economy and encouraged more evening visitors into the city. It may well have been possible to find University students only too keen to make films to show.

 

Tags : City Centre 

Annual beach clean tomorrow (Saturday)

Published on Friday, 14th September 2018

 

Tomorrow is the Marine Conservation Society’s annual nationwide survey of the nation’s shoreline. This is a bit more than a beach clean as volunteers also have to log what they find.

 

Anyone who wants to take part should meet by Rocksby’s café, between the Pier and the Pyramids at 10am. 

 

Tags: Beach clean, Environment

Damaging residents’ parking schemes move forward

Published on Friday, 14th September 2018

 

Two formal consultations on extending residents’ parking to some areas north of Albert Road end on September 20th. If they approved – and quite frankly from the political leaflets that have gone out in that area, they are going to be – it will mean two areas removed in 2014 will be reinstated. This includes the notorious MB zone, which had 1200 spaces, but only 800 permits issued, resulting in vast numbers of empty spaces around-the-clock.

 

It just isn’t possible to extend residents’ parking further in a piecemeal way. You either need to cover a very wide area or to leave things along; nothing in between is workable because of the inevitable displacement of vehicles.

 

You can see details of the areas covered here and here and can comment by emailing This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 

 

Tags: Parking

Police station flats plan revealed

Published on Friday, 14th September 2018

(The blue areas are those likely to be subject of another planning application later)

 

A planning application has come forward for the former Southsea Police Station site in Highland Road. If granted, it will be converted into eighteen flats; its appearance will be largely unchanged; sixteen parking spaces are proposed.

 

Protecting the existing building is important and so at first glance this scheme appears positive, although it becomes less clear cut when you consider some of the details. Fully thirteen of the flats would be one-bedroom, with just a single two-bedroom unit and four studios. The latter would be small, with the smallest just 25m2 – or roughly half the size of an average one-bedroom flat. Moreover parts of the car park are being hived off, presumably for a new build scheme down the line.

 

Some of the application documents are not filled in correctly, but I think I am right in saying that all the units would be for market sale or rent.

 

The best outcome for the area would be to see the old building not just left in tact but to see it brought up to a standard where it becomes an asset to Highland Road. The worry is that we’ll just end up with a cheap conversion.

 

The application reference number is 18/01351/FUL should you wish to comment. The easiest way of doing so is to email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 

 

Tags: Planning

Flood defences – last chance to comment

Published on Wednesday, 22nd August 2018

 

Monday is the final day for comments on the Southsea flood defence proposals. There’s a whole website worth of publicity material here. Some of the proposed changes are quite radical, such as by South Parade Pier, where the plans show a new 1.2m wall, with a large number of boulders behind. The consultation presents options in a number of locations. 

 

A planning application is expected in the autumn.

 

Tags: Flood defences, seafront

Micropubs – a possible new use for old shop buildings

Published on Wednesday, 22nd August 2018

 

In the Victorian age, there were dozens of tiny pubs across Portsmouth - many just the ground floor of a terrace house. Gradually that disappeared, but a modern version may be about to make a comeback.

 

Micropubs are single room pubs, mostly in former shop units and mostly selling more expensive craft beers, often locally sourced. According to the Micropub and Microbrewery Association, the number of such premises has rocketed from 15 in 2013 to perhaps 400 now and there remains potential for further rapid growth. By way of comparison, there are around 50000 pubs in the UK.

 

A current planning application is seeking permission to turn a former newsagent in the Milton Market area into a micropub. The application covers Moorhouse News at 177 Eastney Road (see here for a picture). Opening hours would be dealt with separately through a licensing application. The planning application reference is 18/01152/FUL should you wish to comment.

 

Demand for retail space is falling and in the long term that is going to mean many of today’s shops ending up as flats. However it’s not all doom and gloom and there are some types of new businesses coming along that require space – and micropubs could be one.

 

Tags: Planning, Pubs

Decision over power interconnector to be taken out of the council’s hands

Published on Wednesday, 22nd August 2018

 

There’s been some movement on the proposed Anglo-French power connector that could come ashore in Eastney. The government has ruled from a planning perspective, it will be dealt with as a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project (NSIP). This means that instead of the council making the decision on whether to grant consent, the Planning Inspectorate will make a recommendation to the Secretary of State, who will be the ultimate decision maker. 

 

Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects were introduced into law a decade ago. They are used for road, rail and waste projects, as well as for electricity and gas schemes. This is the first time this legislation has been applied in Portsmouth. The council retains a role in consulting on the scheme.

 

The AQUIND project is a billion pound scheme to import electricity from France – and on occasion, to export to it. Renewable energy production varies hugely depending on the weather and connections of this kind allow surplus energy to not go to waste. 

 

If this scheme goes ahead, the connection to the National Grid will be in Lovedean. A cable will run under Bransbury Road, Eastney Road and Eastern Road and from there through Havant. There are concerns about the traffic congestion that may be generated while the cables are being laid.

 

Tags: Planning, AQUIND

  1. Plug pulled on energy company
  2. New country park might finally be about to be built
  3. Court ruling takes some of the pressure off social care
  4. Residents’ parking debacle: how we’re going to get the short end of the stick
  5. Planning update: new use for old cinema and shared living proposed in Old Portsmouth
  6. Residents’ groups should be consulted on flood defences
  7. Portsmouth on leaked list of Mothercare stores set to close
  8. Phone boxes to go to appeal
  9. Rail replacement works

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Latest News

  • Seafront road open again at last
  • Pyramids closure shock
  • All parking to go to make way for two cycle lanes in Elm Grove/Kings Road?
  • Closure of the seafront. Fine for now, but the council may make it permanent, which would push a thousand cars on to surrounding streets
  • COVID cases in Portsmouth

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News archive

  • ► 2020 (8)
    • ► September (3)
      • • Seafront road open again at last
      • • Pyramids closure shock
      • • All parking to go to make way for two cycle lanes in Elm Grove/Kings Road?
    • ► May (3)
      • • Closure of the seafront. Fine for now, but the council may make it permanent, which would push a thousand cars on to surrounding streets
      • • COVID cases in Portsmouth
      • • Traffic levels now back to half regular level
    • ► March (2)
      • • Coronavirus: the local response
      • • Leaflets
  • ► 2019 (10)
    • ► October (3)
      • • Water refill stations
      • • Painting the Spinnaker
      • • Council set to benefit from government cash
    • ► June (2)
      • • Kings Theatre-area residents’ parking scheme likely to be rubberstamped on Monday
      • • Blank wall of student tower
    • ► March (5)
      • • Planning application for Fraser Range
      • • 480 responses to MD consultation
      • • Council’s local plan can no longer be used to refuse planning applications
      • • Citywide parking petition
      • • parking petition
  • ► 2018 (48)
    • ► December (3)
      • • New emergency department for hospital
      • • Mixed news from Charlotte Street
      • • Pub numbers bearing up
    • ► October (3)
      • • Botched residents’-only schemes to bring new parking problems
      • • Social care grant
      • • Lighting in Guildhall Square
    • ► September (3)
      • • Annual beach clean tomorrow (Saturday)
      • • Damaging residents’ parking schemes move forward
      • • Police station flats plan revealed
    • ► August (6)
      • • Flood defences – last chance to comment
      • • Micropubs – a possible new use for old shop buildings
      • • Decision over power interconnector to be taken out of the council’s hands
      • • Plug pulled on energy company
      • • New country park might finally be about to be built
      • • Court ruling takes some of the pressure off social care
    • ► July (1)
      • • Residents’ parking debacle: how we’re going to get the short end of the stick
    • ► June (3)
      • • Planning update: new use for old cinema and shared living proposed in Old Portsmouth
      • • Residents’ groups should be consulted on flood defences
      • • Portsmouth on leaked list of Mothercare stores set to close
    • ► May (7)
      • • Phone boxes to go to appeal
      • • Rail replacement works
      • • Redundant office block set to become student accommodation
      • • Election results
      • • Boost for Southsea shelter project
      • • Sunday opening at Southsea library
      • • CCTV in allotments
    • ► April (4)
      • • New butcher’s shop in Albert Road
      • • New water feature proves popular
      • • New signs at Canoe Lake
      • • Fruit importer enters new market
    • ► March (8)
      • • D-Day Museum reopens
      • • The homeless shelter
      • • Possible redevelopment option for the Royal Mail sorting office put forward
      • • Cumberland House gets funding boost
      • • Decking application for pier
      • • Fire service to stay separate from the Police and Crime Commissioner – at least for now
      • • Affordable housing around the country
      • • University's only bookstore closed today
    • ► February (7)
      • • Apprenticeship numbers up again
      • • New special school nears completion
      • • Business rates and the High St
      • • New environmentally friendly lighting now being installed
      • • Congestion likely as Network Rail replaces bridge
      • • Exercise group for people with breathing problems benefits from lottery cash
      • • Housing scheme for Fraser Range published
    • ► January (3)
      • • Mountbatten Centre gets a new look
      • • Portsmouth one of a handful of areas to get electric car cash
      • • Church initiative on homelessness
  • ► 2017 (62)
    • ► December (5)
      • • New French electricity link may come ashore at Eastney
      • • Ice rink proving a hit
      • • A Christmas dinner for a hundred older people
      • • The 12 Days of Giving
      • • Views of experts on the costs of social housing
    • ► November (6)
      • • Bus usage in Portsmouth  
      • • Eastleigh – a cautionary tale
      • • Mayfield School rebuild
      • • Work starts on new Police Investigation Centre
      • • A bright future for the Outdoor Centre
      • • Southsea flood defences and the government grant
    • ► September (11)
      • • Business rate relief scheme moves forward
      • • New council housing construction continues apace
      • • Changing the funding model for QA hospital
      • • Tightening the rules on Houses in Multiple Occupation
      • • Successful lottery bid for last landing craft
      • • Churches Homeless Action
      • • Guildhall ice rink for the Christmas period
      • • Local plan consultation
      • • Victorious clean up
      • • Hotel planning consent
      • • GPs practices to merge
    • ► August (3)
      • • Coastal path plan unveiled
      • • Pop-up food venues to open this week
      • • Council buys shop to expand King’s Theatre
    • ► July (6)
      • • Free opera this Wednesday
      • • Phone box advert plan defeated
      • • Rough sleepers in Portsmouth
      • • Free bandstand events off to a flying start
      • • New learning disability housing to open
      • • Exciting new proposals for Moneyfields football club
    • ► June (4)
      • • Election result
      • • New shower to be installed in Canoe Lake
      • • Rewarding volunteers
      • • The causes of delayed discharges from hospital
    • ► April (4)
      • • Public access to the pier and licensing hours
      • • Marks and Spencer closure
      • • Cumberland House museum reopens
      • • University launches new nursing training centre
    • ► March (8)
      • • Broadcasting council meetings
      • • Another new hotel in the pipeline
      • • Eastern Road improvements move forward
      • • French exchange opportunity
      • • Pro tennis tournament coming to Southsea
      • • New hotel planned for Old Portsmouth
      • • Good news for local government in the budget
      • • The Housing White Paper and its local implications
    • ► February (7)
      • • Shocking tactics as LibDems falsely accuse council for the moving of the Yomper
      • • City centre redevelopment plans
      • • Council budget
      • • Anstey hotel planning appeal passes
      • • Big boost for capital projects
      • • Seafront shelter to be restored and a boost for the pier
      • • Working with charities
    • ► January (8)
      • • Fire services in Portsmouth
      • • Secondary school rolls rise again
      • • Portsmouth's economy grows
      • • Police and the council tax
      • • Interaction saved
      • • Housebuilding stats
      • • Eastern Road waterbridge
      • • Four-year funding settlement for local government
  • ► 2016 (22)
    • ► December (4)
      • • Request for funding for South Parade Pier
      • • New housing to help the disabled
      • • Consultation on changes to the health and care system
      • • Generating income to offset budget reductions
    • ► October (7)
      • • Prison land deal will make city just a little more attractive
      • • Limiting the numbers of Houses in Multiple Occupation
      • • Last wartime landing craft coming to Portsmouth
      • • Helping the traders in Commercial Road
      • • New student tower for city centre is good news
      • • New student tower for city centre is good news
      • • Planning application for road at Fraser Ranges
    • ► August (4)
      • • Best ever GCSE results in Portsmouth, even while the pass rate falls across the rest of the country
      • • Inside the new Greetham St student tower
      • • University numbers are not rising
      • • New hovercraft arrive
    • ► July (7)
      • • Sharing senior management with other councils
      • • Wild flowers in Milton Park
      • • Building new affordable housing through a council-owned company
      • • New movable café planned for seafront
      • • Council embraces new technology to improve social care
      • • Miltoncross probably won't be able to expand
      • • Thoughts on Kingston Prison