Parking loss campaigners claim 'once thriving and bustling area of Luton is now a faded and dreary shadow of its former self'

A petition to reintroduce lost parking spaces at a High Town car park has been recommended for rejection by a planning officers' report.

More than 1,200 people have signed the petition to reinstate the 19 parking spaces at Brunswick Street car park after they were removed to make way for parking for new homes in October.

Residents and businesses say the move, which leaves the shopping area with 12 parking spaces, could prove to be the final straw for the area.

The move has seen the formation of a High Town Business and Community (HTMC) group aiming to raise the profile of the historic quarter.

But a Luton council report says a financial review undertaken of all of the car parks in the vicinity of the HighTown area, Brunswick/Back St car park, Wenlock Street and Hitchin Road of the income generated from parking ticket sales demonstrated that all the car parks are underused.

It says the figures for the past four years show the Brunswick/Back Street car park only needs the 12 places it now has.

A report to last week's Petitions and Representations board stated: "Should extra parking be required, Wenlock St and Hitchin Road car parks are nearby.

"The Hitchin Road and Wenlock Street car parks are within easy walking distance of High Town Road. Furthermore, the Hitchin Road car park allows for an all day parking ticket at £5.50 per day, Monday to Friday, whereas the maximum parking ticket at Brunswick St is only 4 hours long. Therefore if anyone requires all day parking in the area, the Hitchin Road car park is the better option.

"In response to the complaints received regarding the closure, the council has ordered sign posts to be installed in the car park to direct the public to Hitchin Road and Wenlock Street car parks in the event the car park is full. A parking review of the relevant area of High Town has been commissioned by the Council to monitor the parking in the vicinity over the next few months."

Councillors deferred any decision over the petition asking officers to clarify the number of people supporting the petition.

A spokesman for the HTMC group said their fight for more parking spaces was being supported by the local church.

He said: "A representative of High Town Methodist Church has said that although the proposed car-parking reductions will increase the difficulties that the church has experienced over recent years (particularly during special occasions such as christening, marriages and funerals) their greatest concern is the impact that it will have on our community - the families and traders of High Town.

"Years of neglect have gradually reduced a once thriving and bustling area to a faded and dreary shadow of its former self. Empty shop windows line the main street, businesses have disappeared and those that remain are struggling for survival as a result of the pandemic.

"The proposal to reduce existing street parking spaces by 70% could prove not only 'the final straw' for those who continue to trade but it would clearly be a major deterrent to new concerns who may be considering High Town as a base for their enterprises.

"The Council suggest that two nearby public car parks will suffice: Wenlock Street - which is close by but now seems to be an 'overfill' car-park for council employees and is therefore often full and Hitchin Road which is a long uphill trek for the elderly or disabled. Both, too, are 'Pay and Display' which will add to the burden of families on small budgets at a time of rapidly increasing inflation."