Neighbours fear converting a former pub into a 12-bed HMO will exacerbate parking chaos in their “already overcrowded” road.

Dover District Council’s planning committee has narrowly approved plans for a home for workers in the closed-down The Dewdrop Inn in Tower Hamlets Street.

But opponents worry the scheme “just won’t work” as they sometimes have to park several streets away from their own homes.

Parking is only on one side of the single-track road, and there are concerns the scheme put forward by MJ Real Estate of Wolverhampton will be an “overintensification” of the area.

Twenty-nine people objected to the plans on DDC’s planning portal, but the scheme was waved through by five votes to four on Thursday night.

Resident David Jones, who sent a letter to the authority, says the project is “just a bad idea”.

“We live in an already overcrowded area and parking is a nightmare as it is,” he said.

“I struggle to park on my own street and quite often have to park a long way away.”

Neighbour Carol Chaplin agreed, saying: “There are just too many cars in a small place like this already and I don’t think there can be room for any more.”

Brian Williamson, who lives a few doors away from the former pub, says traffic from the school run is also “horrendous” with children being transported to and from three nearby schools: Dover Grammar for Boys, Dover Grammar for Girls and Priory Meadow Primary.

“Parking is already atrocious. There is a garage up the road and the boss can hardly park outside,” he said.

"The litter problem around here is already terrible and drains around here are always flooding.”

Dover Town Council is also against the project, saying it would be an over-intensification of the area “bearing in mind Tower Hamlets is the most densely populated ward in Dover”.

But MJ Real Estate says the two-storey building will have a dedicated HMO manager, and has reduced the size of the scheme from 14 rooms to 12 following amendments to the internal layout.

Kent County Council’s highway officials studied a parking survey provided by consultants for the application and from that raised no objections.

In recommending the scheme for approval before Thursday’s meeting, DDC planning officers said there is a “need to accommodate tenants in shared accommodation”.

They added: “While it is accepted that there may be a minor increase to parking pressure, this is not significant to warrant refusal of the application.”

Not all locals were against the development.

Neighbour Gary Bivens said: “People have to live somewhere. It’s tough getting on the housing ladder and people need a roof over their heads.

“There was a rumour going around that the place was going to be used for ex-offenders but I couldn’t find anything from the documents on the planning portal to say that.”

The untrue gossip had been circulated on Facebook and some commenters on the planning portal also raised that fear.

But the management plan by MJ Real Estate states: “The bedrooms will be marketed to working professionals and blue-collar workers.

“With the help of a local letting agent, the rooms will be marketed on property portals such as Rightmove and OpenRent to secure, suitable tenants who will go through a vigorous referencing procedure to ensure they’re suitable.”

And company director Gareth Dominique stressed: “This rumour is completely false. The development is created for local people such as port staff and nurses.

“There is a need for this development and it is high quality.”

Justifying the project overall, he said: “There is a real shortage of accommodation in Dover and this development will provide much-needed quality accommodation for local people.

“We have acknowledged the local concerns which we have addressed in the management plan and it’s in our mutual interests that the property operates positively within the community.“

Find out about planning applications that affect you by visiting the Public Notice Portal.

The Dewdrop Inn closed last year, following the trend of declining small neighbourhood pubs as customers’ habits have changed.

The pub, a tavern since the early 1880s, was the last in Tower Hamlets to go.

The King Edward VII, Havelock Arms, White Lion, Imperial Crown, Tower Inn and Carrier’s Arms had all vanished in the last decade.