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Date submitted

4 August 2026

Submitted by

Interested party

I would like to attend a hearing. I am a resident of a property within 500m of the HIRC development. I have considerable concerns on the proposed development from the inevitable impact on both the local community and from a personal perspective. There are also local government and national government aspects to consider . Local Community Impact. There is a significant likelihood of local protest similar to those protests seen elsewhere in the country. The prospect of this is frightening from both a personal safety and a personal property perspective. The site is only accessible by a single road (Fort Road) either from the East or West. From an Easterly direction access is limited by vehicle weight due to Haslar Bridge and access from the main arterial route M27, the majority of traffic will therefore use the Westerly route. Westerly access is via Fort Road passing the Institute of Naval Medicine and that road has sections which are narrow and without a pedestrian path. The significant increase in traffic (already a factor in the building work) is and will continue to be a serious danger to pedestrians and other road users. The speed limit of 30mph is frequently exceeded during arrival and departure times from the site. Fort Road itself is already used as a rat run and there was a fatal accident 15 months ago and there has been a sequence of near misses. The increase in traffic as staff come and go from the HIMR will only exacerbate existing issues and greatly impact residents during the silent hours. The volume of vehicles using the site during development has already impacted the community and the number of vehicles projected when the site is operational will greatly exceed current numbers. Whilst plans include parking areas there will inevitably be an overflow and this will lead to increased congestion and greater risk of accident. The facility itself noting the application for three 3-storey accommodation blocks will greatly impact the local community. Residents in close proximity to the site will be confronted during daylight hours by a monolith and at night will have the added issue of security lighting which will, and must, be extensive. Their privacy will be gone and their outlook will be replaced by three prison accommodation blocks on the opposite side of the road. Local and National Government. The Fort Monckton site (a sensitive military site) is closely located to the HIRC. Whilst this is a secure site the location of either failed asylum seekers or those asylum seekers as yet unprocessed is not ideally placed to such a facility. Haslar Hospital, the QinetiQ site, Fort Gilkicker, the South side of the Institute of Naval Medicine and Fort Blockhouse are all areas of development either ongoing or yet to start. The HIRC development is likely to impact all of these developments as investors and buyers will be unwilling to substitute a quiet area of the Gosport peninsula for an Immigration Removal Centre and all it brings with it. Personal View As a resident in the immediate area for over ten years this whole project is devastating. Life will change, it must change, the question is by how much? The value of properties in the area is already falling and will continue to fall. As I approach retirement after over thirty years in the Royal Navy and a follow on career from that I had hoped that I had found the house in which I would retire; I now think that is very unlikely. I would therefore ask that careful consideration be given to limiting the proposed development to allow myself, my family, my fellow residents and the local community to carry on with our lives with as little impact on us all as possible.