A CARAVAN park's proposal to replace 30 of its touring pitches with static units has been given the go-ahead by Pembrokeshire County Council.

The application for Trefalun Caravan Park, Devonshire Drive, near St Florence, was backed by the February meeting of the council’s planning committee, subject to conditions, but was brought before full council because of its departure from the Local Development Plan.

County planners had been advised in February to turn it down on the grounds that the site was not well-related to a local settlement and any environmental and economic benefits were not sufficient to outweigh the conflict with policies.

But councillors pointed out that neighbouring holiday parks had had similar applications approved.

A report before Thursday’s full council meeting stated there was a need to agree a Section 106 legal agreement to fund sustainable transport links to nearby visitor attractions along the B4318 road.

Funding figures of £20,000 and £40,000 were mooted for works including bus shelters and pedestrian refuges.

The application was recommended for refusal by officers, but Councillor Jacob Williams moved approval, seconded by Councillor David Bryan.

Councillor Jamie Adams supported the application, favouring a £40,000 contribution.

Local member Cllr Phil Kidney also backed the proposals, but with a maximum of £20,000 in contributions, stating a neighbouring caravan park application had no contribution, adding: “The gentleman who wants to invest in the area feels a little hard done by.”

Members passed the application itself, with two voting against and four abstentions.

A discussion followed on the Section 106 agreement, with both Cllr Adams and Cllr Kidney agreeing to drop their funding proposals after a proposal that officers be delegated to agree the level of the agreement.