Should Summerland Be Used For Parking?

A row has broken out over the future of the Summerland site after a former minister hit out at the rejection of plans for temporary parking, only for the planning committee chair to hit back.

Rushen MHK Dr Michelle Haywood criticised the decision to refuse a Department of Infrastructure (DoI) proposal for a short-term car park on the site, saying the idea was originally hers.

In a social media post, she said there was a ‘clear lack of parking’ at the northern end of Douglas Promenade and described the refusal as ‘a total nonsense’, adding it would leave the site continuing to ‘do nothing’.

She sarcastically added: ‘Well done planning committee…well done’.

But planning committee chairman Rob Callister responded, saying he was ‘disappointed’ the criticism had been made publicly.

He said: ‘I am disappointed that a former DOI Minister has chosen to criticise, via social media, the Planning Committee’s decision.’

Mr Callister added that the application had been recommended for refusal by professional officers and rejected for ‘five clear and substantive planning reasons’, including conflicts with planning policy and concerns over visual impact.

He said the proposal would also have ‘undermined the future comprehensive redevelopment of the Summerland site’.

Mr Callister stressed the committee had acted ‘properly, lawfully, and fully in line with its statutory responsibilities’.

The DoI proposal had sought to create 32 temporary parking spaces for 18 months to ease pressure in the area.

However, the committee voted unanimously to refuse the application, citing multiple policy conflicts.