Councillors voted to sell off a town centre car park last night to make way for an office block.

At a heated debate at the Strategy and Resources Committee Liberal Democrat councillors voted in favour of controversial recommendations to sell the Brighton Road car park to Subsea 7 – a subsea engineering and construction company.

The proposals, to sell the site in order to make way for a state-of-the-art office block, are expected to bring a large influx of highly skilled professionals to the borough as well as creating jobs.

However, the plans have been criticised because of the car park’s proximity to the Sutton Station which is heavily used.

Last night three Tory councillors abstained from voting in the recommendations – arguing for a wider scale debate at full council, problems with parking and the strategic importance of the car park considering plans for further expansion around Sutton town centre.

Conservative Belmont councillor, Peter Geiringer, said he was concerned about the recommendations and that the car park was a “strategic asset” intended for commuters’ use.

He said: “If they can’t park there they will look to the nearest place for free parking – all the roads in South Sutton, Belmont and Shanklin.

"We are going to be clogged up with something like this.

“I’m totally in favour of new jobs – I just think the site is wrong. We don’t know somewhere in the future the tube might be extended to Sutton.

"Once we lose this car park it’s gone forever.”

However, Sutton South councillor, Heather Honour, said it was important to attract businesses to Sutton and work was being done to mitigate parking problems.

She said: “I’m fed up with everyone looking at what’s wrong with it. Let’s deal with the problems and let’s say get more business into Sutton.”

Her Sutton South colleague, Richard Clifton, agreed with the importance of attracting business but said a strategy must be put in place to ensure drivers displaced from Brighton Road actually move to Gibson Road car park rather than parking in the streets.

The committee agreed to examine measures including incentives to move users to Gibson Road car park.

It is expected that Subsea 7 will make a formal planning application for a five-storey steel and glass structure in the next few weeks.

If granted work would begin on site later this year with the company expected to move into its new offices in autumn 2015.

The Subsea7 project stems from the Opportunity Sutton programme which launched in June last year to encourage businesses to set up in the borough.

Do you agree this car park should be turned into offices? Leave a comment below or email your thoughts to ssleigh@london.newsquest.co.uk.