Subsea 7, the expanding engineering company that want to bring over 500 new jobs to Sutton have, after discussions with Heather and Richard, agreed to extend their exhibition setting out their proposals. It will now be held on Tuesday 26 March from 3pm to 9pm in addition to the exhibition on 19 March. Both events will be at the Holiday Inn in Sutton. 

Richard and Heather have had further meetings with Subsea7, and the following is the text of their letter sent to local residents.

“Since we learned of the proposed redevelopment of the Brighton Road Car Park site, we have been working hard to tackle the parking issues that might arise for residents in Sutton South. Although this is still very much work in progress, we thought it a good time to bring you up to date with what is going on.

As you know, the high-tech engineering firm Subsea 7 want to expand their presence in Sutton by building a brand new state-of-the-art Head Quarters for their international business. This may bring up to 500 new jobs.

The new building will be much more attractive than the existing Brighton Road Car Park and will be designed by a renowned firm of architects, ESA. It will form part of a renewed “Gateway to Sutton” along the Brighton Road from the South that, in addition to new jobs, will provide extra spending power for local shops, restaurants and hotels.

Keeping the company in Sutton will also protect over 300 jobs that the company currently have located in the Borough so that they do not move elsewhere.

Subsea 7 have considered other buildings in Sutton that are currently empty, like Sutherland House, but have found that these are not satisfactory for the needs of an international  headquarters.

The Council undertook a parking capacity study that showed that Council public car parks are only 53 per cent full during the peak weekday period.  This means that there is therefore 47 per cent spare capacity. 

But the report did not address the specific issue of increased on-road parking in the Highfields area and adjacent roads, including Upland Road and Farm Road. We immediately pointed this out to the Council and were told that its purpose was to ensure that the loss of parking in the Brighton Road Car Park would not damage the town centre’s economy. 

We have therefore asked for work to be undertaken on the impact on car parking in the Highfields area and adjacent roads.  We have also asked for financial incentives to encourage those drivers who currently use the Brighton Road Car Park to go to the Gibson Road Car Park rather than drive up to the area outside the controlled parking zone. These discussions are ongoing.  

We have discussed with Subsea 7 our concerns about on-road parking in Sutton South and, as part of any planning application, they will be required to submit a traffic impact survey. We have asked that the traffic survey also considers where commuters will park as a result of these changes, And what local impact it will have. The results of this study will then be taken in to account by the Council when it negotiates with Subsea 7 about their financial obligations to the local community.  This is part of the normal process with any large planning development.

The next steps are as follows:

• Subsea 7 will hold an exhibition on the proposed development at the Holiday Inn on 19 March and 26 March, and we do encourage you to visit it.
• The Council’s Strategy and Resources Committee (which is made up of a number of Sutton Councillors from both parties) will consider whether they can agree Heads of Agreement with Subsea 7. This is basically an agreement to go ahead, subject to planning permission. The meeting is open to the public.
• If the Heads of Agreement are agreed, Subsea 7 can then apply for planning permission and all aspects of their application, including the impact on parking, will be assessed against current planning standards. Residents have the opportunity to submit their comments on the application and the decision will be taken by the Council’s Development Control Committee, again made up of Sutton’s elected Councillors.”