The traveller “merry-go round” has continued – with more than 30 evicted vehicles pitching up on another open space just four miles away.
Brighton and Hove City Council yesterday began clearing up after the last of the vehicles town hall officials let onto Wild Park in Moulsecoomb, Brighton, drove off the site.
But instead of leaving the city, dozens of vehicles headed to Surrenden Field, off London Road, Brighton, to join another unauthorised encampment.
As officials said they would have to wait until Monday for a court date to get an eviction notice, residents called for the local authority to rethink its approach to travellers.
Allan Pike, who lives near Surrenden Field, said: “The city is becoming an absolute joke.
“What, if anything, is being done by the council to put a long-term strategy in place to stop these people doing a loop of four or five sites every couple of months and rid the city of the problem for good?
“To my knowledge this isn’t a problem that every city faces so there must be a way to get these groups to leave the city for good.”
Bob Kidd, who lives in Portslade but walks his dogs in Wild Park, said: “It’s difficult to know what to do.
“You are either soft in the head like the council are currently or take a hard approach which will deter the groups.”
The Argus broke the news that officials took the decision to open the gate last week. The local authority claimed it was necessary as members of the unauthorised encampment had been acting dangerously by mounting the pavement and driving over artificial mounds to enter the park.
By making access easier, police officers said they were unable to carry out an immediate eviction under a Section 61 order.
When asked about Surrenden Field, a council spokeswoman said: “We will be applying to the court for a possession order which will enable us to arrange for an eviction to be carried out as soon as practicable, should the families fail to leave the site voluntarily.”
See the latest news headlines from The Argus:
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article