A petition to save Wokingham town centre’s Denmark Street car park has received more than 2,400 signatures.

The popular car park closed suddenly at midnight on Monday, August 26, after landowners saw plans to build 77 flats on the site thrown out by Wokingham Borough Council (WBC).

Conservative town councillor Daniel Hinton, who organised the petition, told the News: “The idea of the petition is we present it to Wokingham Borough Council and the landlord, and say ‘we want you to come together to make a deal so we can keep our car park open’”.

Cllr Hinton suggested discussions between the parties could see the car park re-opening or could lead to WBC leasing the site to ensure visitors to the town centre can use it.

He added: “This shows that there is a strategy behind this petition.

“This car park is very important to the disabled and the elderly as it is the flattest part of the town centre.”

Residents are now blocked from entering the car park as concrete blocks have been placed by entrances.

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Of the 2,400 signatures, 1,400 have come from the online version of the petition, with Cllr Hinton and other campaigners collecting more in person around the town centre.

A number of town centre businesses have also backed the petition in a bid to get more signatures before it is presented at WBC’s full council meeting on Thursday, September 19.

Cllr Hinton said residents have seen the move to close the car park as a “very shady act” after WBC refused developers plans to replace the car park with almost 80 homes.

The closure has seen Wokingham Foodbank struggling, with Cllr Hinton telling the News fewer people have been able to volunteer for the service since the site stopped operating.

You can view the petition here