Officers at B&NES Council have been left scratching their heads this week as travellers have moved on to the top of South Road car park during the weekend. Occupants of seven caravans have made the Council-owned land home and no-one really seems to know how long for.

B&NES Officers visited the site on Monday afternoon to assess the situation and to see if legal action would be needed, as the car park is being used for an unintended purpose on private land. The car park, which is very often full during the day, was once locked at night due to anti-social behaviour with loud music and racing cars, but was reopened so that residents could park there during the evenings.

Speaking this week, B&NES Councillor, Michael Evans, (Cons., Midsomer Norton North), said: "We've been in contact with Council officers, who have informed us that they have a liaison team assessing the situation and entering a dialogue with the owners of the caravans.  We've also asked Officers to provide a briefing on the process the Council undertakes in these circumstances.

"Clearly, we would like to see this resolved as swiftly as possible, as South Road car park is an important public amenity and the caravans are currently taking up quite a large number of parking spaces. We will continue to stay in regular contact with Council officers about what is being done to ensure the car park can return to normal use."

This is a difficult situation for B&NES – a spokesperson for the Council admitted back in February that "The area urgently needs gypsy traveller pitches" and has been trying to create 22 permanent residential pitches for gypsies and travellers, eight of which are currently being built on the Lower Bristol Road, in Bath, along with five temporary or transit pitches. However, this is the redevelopment of an unofficial site that already existed, so families that were currently using this area were moved on, with the option to come back when it was ready. Where, then, are they able to go in the meantime?

The Council must also identify twenty transit pitches and one showman's yard to fulfil Government requirements. The Lower Bristol Road site made tabloid headlines with the cost of the project – and local Conservatives have been disputing the Council's costing of £1.8 million (most recently £1.62 million, £750,000 of which will come from the Homes and Communities Agency and £870,000 Council borrowing). Conservatives say with added costs of professional fees and land value, the project could cost up to £2.35 million. It is due to be completed in March next year.

The fact that travellers have taken up residence within South Road car park will also shed an uncomfortable spotlight on the site itself, which is meant to be part of a grand regeneration plan for the town and has gone very quiet of late. An announcement was expected in Spring this year as to which supermarket had taken the lease with the developer, Wrenbridge, however, this information is still yet to be revealed. It has left local people wondering if, indeed, it will ever happen and if plans have seriously stalled. B&NES had hoped that work would begin this autumn, with the supermarket in operation from early 2016. This now looks unlikely. It may also highlight the already contentious issue of parking – and potential lack of.

"It is really disappointing from a Chamber perspective that all the hopes to get the regeneration of Midsomer Norton underway have ground to a halt on the supermarket front with B&NES," said Jon Plenty, Retail Director of the Midsomer Norton and Radstock Chamber of Commerce. "We've called on B&NES Council to work with us to put in place a 'business as usual plan' to provide additional parking in the build phase, as and when things move forward with the supermarket plan.

"A car park built on the edge of the new Town Park would provide a place for business employees to park, with additional customer parking at the Leisure Centre, Somervale School and West Clewes. Our hopes are now pinned on B&NES moving things forward as the supermarket investment programmes come back to life with the improvements to the economy – later this year and into January 2015."Updating The Journal about the situation at South Road, a spokesperson for B&NES Council said: "There is a small group of travellers on South Road car park. We are visiting every day and monitoring this situation. They have told us that they plan to leave this weekend, but if they haven't moved on by that time, we will actively review their situation. We have notified the police." The spokesperson was unable to say if the travellers would be offered space at the Lower Bristol Road site.

Back in February, the Council said: "Over the past ten years, there have been around twenty unauthorised gypsy and traveller sites across the district. Once the Council has allocated land for pitches and facilities are in place, we will have a firm basis upon which to take robust enforcement action on unauthorised sites."

Without anywhere to offer the South Road travellers in the meantime, this situation, therefore, could become very interesting indeed.