More large houses may have to be converted into flats to keep up with the property boom in Southend, it has been warned.

Clive Lucas, a specialist housing consultant, said: "In the past, many houses were turned into flats but this was halted by development control.

"The council might have to change that."

Speaking at a meeting of the Southend Business and Tourism Partnership, Mr Lucas, a consultant for Dedmans Property Services, said the new A130 bypass had made Southend more accessible.

He said schemes such as Priory Crescent road widening were vital to Shoebury because a new road which went no further than Shoebury was unlikely to get Government backing.

Mr Lucas said a period of stability in the housing market looked set to continue as interest rates and unemployment levels remained low.

He said the lowest levels of building in the last 30 years had led to a housing shortage and the new university college in Southend would lead to a demand for student accommodation in the heart of the town.

Mr Lucas added a lack of parking space should not deter planners from encouraging high-density housing as most people in such areas coped adequately, either parking outside the area or giving up their cars and hiring vehicles for weekend trips.

He said: "Maybe we are unable to compete with Barcelona but maybe we could be a new Bilbao."

Mr Lucas said there were a number of "exciting developments" in the town particularly on the seafront.

Mr Lucas praised stores in the High Street saying they were very much geared to the young consumer.

However, he said he was dismayed that no guide to the huge number of unusual and "idiosyncratic" shops around the town was available.

He said: "Those hard-to-find shops, are, in Southend, just that - hard to find."

Published Monday, May 26, 2003

Brought to you by the Evening Echo