Go-ahead for £30m Gosport waterfront development

Portsmouth Naval Base Property Trust (PNBPT) is developing the site in partnership with Elite Homes.

They plan to build 30 homes, a new Coastal Forces Museum and a brewery with associated bar/restaurant. The housing construction is earmarked to begin in May or June and be completed between April and September 2021.

It is part of the wider Priddy’s Hard regeneration that will turn the old naval Armaments Centre, which dates back to 1750, into a residential and tourist hub.

There had been an embargo on works because of concerns at Natural England about possible nitrate pollution of the Solent and harbours. Gosport Council has confirmed that Natural England has now accepted its proposals to mitigate the impact the new housing will have on the release of nitrates to allow the development to proceed.

The 40-acre Priddy’s Hard site, on the western shore of Portsmouth Harbour, was bought by PNBPT from Gosport Borough Council in 2009. In the 18th century it was where the Royal Navy stored gunpowder.

Planning approval for phase one of the regeneration follows Elite Homes’ nine-home redevelopment of Ordnance Yard, which is expected to be completed in the coming weeks. Located within Priddy’s Hard’s conservation area, the site was once home to the Royal Navy’s armaments production. It now has six, three-level, ultra-modern homes built between blast walls, a feature from its previous incarnation. A further two, two-storey properties are at the water’s edge looking out towards Portsmouth’s Spinnaker Tower.

Elite Homes director David Craddock said: “With Priddy’s Hard we are creating a development that is unrivalled across the whole of the south coast of England. From conservation to ecology agencies, to environmental and historical organisations, we have taken a collaborative approach to this project. For the buildings themselves, as with the Ordnance Yard development, each will be constructed or restored using offsite construction methods and recyclable, low energy materials. Taking our inspiration from the site’s incredible history, we are creating something that will benefit this overlooked part of town for future generations.”

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