DOZENS of neighbours of a Basingstoke business park have objected to plans to turn it into three warehouses.

Plans were submitted to Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council by AEW UK Core Property Fund in October 2020 asking to demolish and replace one building and construct two new units on the site of the former Intec2 The Studios in Wade Road.

Now, the council’s development control committee will decide on the plans on March 29 after dozens of neighbours objected.

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Permission was granted by the borough council in 2015 to change the use of the 2.8 ha business park.

The owners then submitted plans in 2020 asking to develop the site and this has been recommended for approval by council officers.

A report prepared for the development control committee says: “The proposal would help meet the identified need for such premises (as set out in the council’s economic needs assessment 2018).”

However, Cllr Paul Harvey, who represents the Norden ward, requested the plans be decided by the committee on behalf of residents living nearby who he said “will be directly affected by the operation of the buildings as warehouses as opposed to offices”.

He added: “The impact of allowing operators to use the buildings 24/7 Monday to Friday in close proximity to residential dwellings will create a considerable negative impact on the amenity of these residents. I think that this is something the committee should hear and decide on, given the considerable concern there is locally.”

Old Basing and Lychpit Parish Council’s planning and development committee “strongly objected” to the application because of the increased noise which it said “will severely impact the quality of life for neighbouring residents”.

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It called for restrictions to be imposed on the operational hours of any tenant who occupies the buildings “to prevent antisocial out-of-hours noise”.

The three units will provide around 7,864 sqm of floor space.

Officers recommended that restrictions are placed on the operation of plant and machinery “given it is shown that there would likely be at least an adverse impact if not a significant adverse impact during the night-time period of the weekend”.

It recommended that machinery is not operated from 11pm to 7am on Friday, Saturday, Sunday and public holidays.

Darius Nicholson, who lives near the site, said the plans for the warehouse are “massive, dominant and intrusive and will tower over my neighbour’s back gardens and my front garden”.

He added: “Residents, including myself, are devastated at the thought of all of this.”

Darius said that residents were never informed about the change of use application for the business park, and added: “We are in support of making use of the business park but it must be in a way that considers the needs of residents who live, work and raise families nearby.”

A council spokesperson said: "The application submitted in 2020 required planning obligations in connection to the Travel Plan to be agreed with the developer before this application could be determined. Since the start of 2023 a number of objections from residents have been received. The number of objections has now triggered the referral to the next available Development Control Committee on 29 March 2023.

"There was an application for a change of use in 2015. This was for a limited area and therefore did not require a consultation with properties outside of the wider site under national guidelines. A site notice was displayed dated 30 November 2015."