REVISED plans to redevelop the area to the rear of Romsey's White Horse Hotel look set to fall at the first hurdle. Borough planning chiefs are recommending Romsey Developments' ambitious scheme to build 14 dwellings in the hotel's car park is thrown out when the authority's southern area planning committee meet next Tuesday.

And numerous objections have been lodged with borough planners. Six hotel bedrooms in the old stable block would become commercial units if the scheme was passed.

This is Romsey Developments second application to redevelop the Market Place site. The earlier plan included more housing and it was withdrawn last December before councillors had a chance to make a decision.

If Romsey Developments' plans get the green light it will mean the loss of nearly all the car parking space at the hotel. However, the scheme does make provision for 42 long and short-term cycle storage spaces to encourage residents and hotel staff to be less reliant on cars.

English Heritage is amongst official bodies objecting to the proposals. It says the White Horse is a "remarkable building with a considerable presence" in Romsey town centre.

"The three-storey function suite at the rear of the hotel is extremely unfortunate but it should not be regarded as a precedent for new back-land development," says English Heritage.

Romsey Town Council is also unhappy with the scheme. It says converting the stables into commercial units will generate what it describes as a "significant parking demand during the working day" which is not provided anywhere in application site.

"The activities in the hotel and the 14 dwellings will generate a parking demand which will have a negative impact upon the parking situation in the rest of the town," claims the town authority. Romsey and District Society has also objected along with traders and residents.

The society is concerned about access to the hotel site via Latimer Street - particularly emergency service vehicles. "The access is asking a lot that this narrow entrance should carry residents' traffic in addition to that of hotel guests, services and deliveries," says the organisation.

Other objectors say the close proximity of proposed new commercial units to the nearby Abbey Hotel could result in a loss of trade at the Church Street watering hole and the proposed housing on the car park may have an impact on the Mascot Bakery. People also claim the hotel will not be able to operate properly with a drastic reduction in planned car parking.

Acknowledging that the development of the site is "acceptable in principle" planning officers say the design, scale and massing of the proposed buildings are "out of character" with the historic core of Romsey and would neither preserve nor enhance this area of the town's conservation area.