A NEW 188-bed student apartment complex, which a neighbour says will “degrade” Southampton’s Old Town area, has been given the go-ahead by city planners.

Situated in the High Street, the site will feature a five to six-storey apartment block and a four-storey management and accommodation building, backing on to Castle Way.

Three buildings, including Rocket Ronnies Pool Hall, will be demolished.

Elderly neighbour David Bayliss blasted the proposal at the city council’s planning meeting on Tuesday evening.

“Old Town Southampton is our heritage and the city’s selling point for tourists,” he said. “The city’s most historic area should not be degraded by this development.”

He added: “As a compromise, you should build the student accommodation on the high street side, and build attractively designed residential housing with their own parking on the Castle Way side.”

However, this suggestion was not taken on and the plans were approved by seven votes to zero.

Anther issues raised at the meeting was the parking provision for the site.

Just four parking spaces will serve the development so locals were concerned that students would try to park in the surrounding streets. However, planners said they were confident this wouldn’t happen, due to the students’ inability to obtain parking permits.

The plans also include a gym and communal recreation area. Three “commercial units”, which have been labelled as retail, on the ground floor of the main building, facing High Street. A lounge/café is also proposed.

Several neighbours submitted written objections, claiming that student accommodation is “out of character” with the Old Town area, and late night noise and anti-social behaviour will become a common occurrence.

One local, Catherine Curtice of Westgate Street, said: “I am in favour of this site being suitably developed. But, my objection is to the proposed usage of the accommodation.

“Old Town needs family accommodation and not students whose lifestyle will be in opposition to and unappreciative of the local area and its importance to tourism.

“The city is already swamped with student accommodation behind the opposite side of the High Street where there is little remaining heritage to protect.

“I feel as an Old Town resident that student accommodation is inappropriate and the council should resist the easy ‘in vogue’ option of developers preference for ever more student accommodation.”

Applicant Lainston Lupa LLP’s proposals also include widening Castle Way to “reinstate an historic street pattern” and a footway through the site, linking High Street to Castle Way.