1. Location in Town

This area forms part of the Town Centre. It comprises shops and car parks; it includes residential and commercial property together with key facilities – railway station, hospital, fire station and telephone exchange and 2 churches. There is considerable through traffic along Station Road, Charles Street, Swan Street and Chapel Street and in addition there is local traffic accessing the station, hospital, car parks, shops, commercial premises and housing.

2. Vistas/Views

There are limited views out to the Downs to the south from Swan Street, to fields and trees to the west of Swan Street and to the Hangers from Charles Street. However, most of the area is very built-up and feels enclosed with some 3 and 4 storey buildings. However a key vista is west to the Railway Station from the bottom of Lavant Street/Chapel Street and the spire of the Methodist Church and the cupola of St. Laurence Catholic Church are dominant features of Station Road

3. Landscaping

There is limited landscaping throughout the area and it is mostly unkempt. The hospital car park has been planted and has limited maintenance and the bordering trees along the open space at the end of Swan Street beyond the Doctor’s Surgery are obstructing the footpath. Two prominent trees including a copper beech are adjacent to the Fire Station.

4. Building Characteristics

A range of building types reflecting different time periods – Victorian Railway Station; Late Victorian/Edwardian shops in Chapel Street – 2 and 3 stories; same period terracing in Charles Street and Swan Street; Lavant Street a mix, partly Victorian and later but greatly modified on north side with shop fronts and poor fascia; Swan Street - art deco cinema (due to be demolished) together with 1960’s apartments – Castle Gardens and Swan Court (“a deplorable neo-Georgian office building” Pevsner) now being converted to residential ; 1970’s Telephone Exchange – concrete shuttering; 1990’s Drum Mead – Housing Association in traditional style; the curious forge on corner Swan Street/Charles Street; 1990’s cottage hospital in brick; fire station – traditional county style; Lavant Court, Charles Street/Station Road – 1980’s brick 3 and 4 storey block of apartments; Former Dairy Site – Station Road – mix of semi –industrial buildings ready for redevelopment; St. Laurence (R.C.) Station Road (Grade 11 Listed) – Pevsner’s Hampshire describes it - “1890 -1 by Kelly – a handsome church, purely Italian if it were not for the red brick and very restrained. Nave without aisles or chapels, octagonal dome, transepts and chancel”. Also on Station Road and opposite – the unlisted Methodist Church, which Pevsner describes as “1903 by Gordon and Gunton, Black flint and red brick with a SW tower and Perp. details churchy rather ostentatious and very conservative”. Corner Station Road/Chapel Street – traditional cottages with hung tiles and low roofs – an important entrance point to the town centre and Listed.

5. Building Materials

Mostly brick with some rendering – pitched roofs and tiles. However the BT Telephone exchange almost defies description – concrete panelling and flat roof with a series of masts.

6. Roofs

Mostly pitched with slates and tiles – the variety of building forms means that there is wide range of roof types, particularly in Chapel Street and Lavant Street on different levels. However the flat roofs of the shops on the north side of Lavant Street are particularly unattractive

7. Special Features & Landmarks

The area is traversed by the river but it is all in culvert and mostly hidden, so an important feature is lost. There are several special buildings – railway station – very traditional and an important viewpoint along Lavant Street; the churches with their cupola and spire; the fire station with its tower; the hospital; the unique and quirky forge; Jacobs and Hunt’s sale room with its rather odd rounded tower and the Poor House in Swan Street – an historic reminder of old Petersfield.

8. Sustainability

No signs of any sustainability feature or attempt to promote it.

9. Short summary description of area

A complex area – part Town Centre with a range of lesser shops and secondary uses such as charity and take-aways; but some important independent retailers such as estate agents; bookshops; butcher; photography; kitchen; bathroom and delicatessen and restaurants. Residential – previously mostly terraced but new apartments being built and conversions undertaken – so balance changing. Key facilities, including car parks mean that traffic is constant throughout and the area has very urban feel. Maintenance is a problem for both the public and private realms and the area seems to lack an overall structure and is the poor relation to the Square and High Street. Yet it is mostly covered by the Petersfield Conservation Area and would benefit from environmental enhancements.

10. Main issues and recommendations

This is an area under pressure for redevelopment – Charles Court is under construction; the cinema is shortly to be demolished; Swan Court is being converted into apartments. At the back of the Post Office and adjacent to the Sorting Office there is a large area mostly used for parking that may well be redeveloped at some point. Lavant Street fails to rise to its potential – an important pedestrian route to the station and with a range of retailing – it feels a secondary location. Shop fronts are poor and without co-ordination. Parking is haphazard. Lavant Street Car park is poorly signed and lacks an overall design structure, yet is an important entrance point to the town. Some recent planning decisions have failed to grasp the opportunities for a radical reappraisal of the area. The station area is confused with parking and access for passengers in constant competition; lighting is non –existent and needs drastic improvement; buses do not appear to coordinate with the trains. Tesco Express at the top of Charles Street causes traffic chaos and noise for local residents. The following ideas are recommended-

• Design guidelines for any future redevelopment, particularly around the car park and the Post Office
• An appraisal of the opportunities of an improvement/enhancement scheme for Lavant Street – better parking; wider pavements; street furniture; landscaping; improved pedestrian access to shops and the station; with clear signage of links to adjoining areas
• An appraisal of the remainder of the Conservation Area, to investigate a possible enhancement scheme
• Revised parking arrangements for Swan Street in front of Castle Gardens, with proper landscaping.
• Better maintenance of existing landscaping and pavements
• Investigation with BT of the future of the Telephone Exchange
• Improved lighting, parking and pedestrian access to the station
• Development of a scheme with SW Trains for improved parking adjacent to the Station
• Appraisal of access and parking for Tesco Express
• Generally improved signage and maintenance for car parks, shops and facilities such as the hospital.