Plans to extend an Aberystwyth car park by more than 150 spaces as part of Ceredigion County Council plans to revamp parking in the town have been approved by planners despite concerns over a potential flooding risk.

The plans to extend Maesyrafon car park into the former Arriva bus depot on Park Avenue were included in last year’s budget documents as part of a swathe of parking changes which included removal of spaces from Aberystwyth’s south promenade, charging for parking on north promenade, and a reworking of parking charges across the county.

An application to extend the current 97 parking spaces at the facility by incorporating the former bus depot went before Ceredigion County Council’s Development Management Committee on 14 May.

The plans, approved at the meeting, will see the combined site have room for 251 vehicles, with a dedicated electric vehicle zone that will cater for 17 vehicles and 20 disabled spaces.

As part of the plans the existing boundary wall between Maesyrafon and the current car park will be removed and replaced by a 4m wide path and tree replanting, documents said.

That part of the plan came in for criticism from local resident and local town councillor Mair Benjamin, who asked committee members to reject the plans at the meeting.

Cllr Benjamin said: “While I acknowledge the necessity of expanding the parking facilities, I must express serious concerns, particularly regarding the potential removal of the separation wall between Maes yr Afon and the car park.

“This wall currently serves as a vital component of the flood defences for residents, especially those of us living close to the River Rheidol.

“The wall, therefore, plays an essential role in protecting the nearby properties from the threat of flooding.

“Removing or altering this wall without providing adequate replacement or enhancement could significantly increase the flood risk to Maes yr Afon and the surrounding area.”

Cllr Benjamin also raised concerns over a potential loss of spaces for residents of Maesyrafon and called for a residents’ permit to be introduced.

Aberystwyth Town Council “welcomed the efforts being made to provide additional parking spaces in Aberystwyth” but objected to the scheme due to “concerns over the development’s impact on flood risk.”

Documents said that Natural Resources Wales “considered the matter of flooding and are content that the scheme is acceptable from a flooding perspective.”

The Arriva bus depot was demolished in 2015 for commercial re-development by Ceredigion County Council, “however its location within a Zone C1 floodplain constrains the type of development that can be built,” documents said.

The site is currently used to store council equipment, a depot for street cleaning services and also hosts the twice monthly farmers’ market.

The council said that the parking solution would be an “interim” use for the site, if flooding concersn over commercial development could be solved.

In a report council planners concluded that “the proposal is acceptable as an interim use, whilst remaining an allocated site with options for future redevelopment.”

The plans were approved subject to conditions.