Five car parks in a town centre are under threat of closure amid a scramble to fill a near £1 million council budget black hole.

The set have all been declared "surplus to requirements" by Tunbridge Wells council which is now reviewing their potential for development and sale.

Between them they provide the borough with more than 1,000 parking spaces.

The five are the short-stay car parks at Great Hall (205 spaces) adjacent to Calverley Gardens; Meadow Road (450 spaces), Torrington Car Park off Vale Avenue (243 spaces) and at Linden Park (54 spaces). In addition, the long-stay car park at Mount Pleasant Avenue (60 spaces) could also go.

That would leave the borough with around 2,500 council-owned spaces in the town and around 3,449 across the whole borough

The council said no decision had yet been made about whether they would be sold for housing development or for another private car park operator to take them on.

The borough is currently offering the public a chance to respond to its asset management plan consultation. including the disposal of the car parks and other assets like the Wesley Centre in Paddock Wood, To do so, visit here.

A spokesman for the council said: "No decision has been taken about the future of any of the car parks and decisions will be taken in tandem with a new parking strategy.

"We will review the responses to the consultation and then cabinet will decide what will be a priority – timescales and the broader parking strategy will emerge as part of this process.

"Sufficient car parking will be retained to meet the future needs of Royal Tunbridge Wells as part of this approach."

The local authority needs to plug a £943,000 shortfall in its current budget.

The borough's present car parking strategy that is supposed to run until 2026 talks of the need "to improve, enhance and expand car parking provision" in the town.

Nasir Jamil is a Tunbridge Wells resident who condemned the proposed closures.

Speaking from the Great Hall car park, he said: "It would have a serious adverse effect on local businesses.

"The Great Hall car park is used by customers visiting Hoopers next door, shoppers at the Great Hall Arcade, visitors to the nearby dentist surgery and those enojoying Calverley Park behind us.

"Since this administration took over at the council, all they have done is increase parking fees and cut the number of parking spaces."

The council's strategy can be read here.

The former Conservative deputy leader at Tunbridge Wells, David Scott, was also critical of the sale.

He said: "Sale of revenue-generating assets like car parks potentially reduces revenue and increases deficits.

"By selling, whether to private operators or developers, car park charges will go up, impacting local businesses as people elect not to pay and go elsewhere.

"This is not a good business model for a borough council.

"The council needs revenue generating assets that also encourage people to come to the borough and spend in the town."

The borough said no disposal value had yet been calculated for the five car parks.