16 C O N T E X T 1 2 2 : N O V E M B E R 2 0 1 1 Rob Harper Gosport’s military legacy With world-class historic buildings in a spectacular waterfront location and a long military history, Gosport, in spite of the many complexities, is an area of enormous potential. Gosport in south Hampshire is a small borough of 80,000 people forming a peninsula of land on the western side of Portsmouth Harbour. Its location has meant that it has played a very significant role in military history and in the development of fortifications.The borough’s rich military legacy presents a complex challenge due to the unusual nature of many of the buildings and unique geographical circumstances. Over the last 15 years a number of major military sites have become surplus to requirements and have been released for redevelopment. These sites retain many historic buildings and sites of archaeological significance. The challenge has been to help positively and constructively to regenerate the sites successfully. Vulnerable to attack by sea, and forming part of the context of Portsmouth Harbour, Gosport has had to consider defensive measures to counter the threat of enemy invasion from the 15th century onwards. Principal among these defences are the Gosport Lines (18th century earth bastions and ramparts surrounding the town), the Stokes Bay Lines (further defences constructed on the coast in the 1780s), and the extensive mid-19th century Palmerston Fortifications (an extensive series of forts, batteries and lines of ramparts). The harbour context, and these defences, encouraged many support services to develop in the area. Major sites that have been released include Royal ClarenceVictuallingYard, Haslar Hospital, Priddy’s Hard Naval Ordnance Depot, the mid-Victorian St George Barracks, and HMS Daedalus (a former seaplane base whose recent declaration as an enterprise zone will have heritage implications). Sites still partially or actively in use include several other forts, ship testing tanks, Crimean War gunboat sheds and an extensive area of underground magazines. The borough, covering only 2,750 hectares, is surrounded on three sides by the Solent. Over 20 per cent of the land area is within the flood zone. Since the 1990s the proportion of land owned by the MoD has dropped from over 30 per cent to 20 per cent. The high level of MoD-related employment continues to be at risk as defence reviews continue. The borough has pockets of high deprivation and an aging population. The employment sites, and indeed the historic sites, largely hug the coast and were accessed primarily by sea. The A32, the only significant route into the borough, accentuates the difficulties of a peninsula location.Access is particularly problematic. There is strong opposition to more housing due to the poor infrastructure, and pressure for more employment within the borough, to reduce out-commuting. Finally, lack of funding from within the Defence The Granary at Royal ClarenceYard and the newly completed south range, whose design reflects that of the original stores which were bombed in the second world war
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjgyMjA=