Residents from some of Wirral’s most sumptuous homes have failed in their fight to get a tennis club’s floodlighting plan ruled “out of court.”

People living in West Kirby’s Meols Drive conservation area launched a fierce protest against Hoylake Tennis Club’s proposals to erect a dozen eight-metre high floodlights at their premises in Eddisbury Road.

The strength of their objections prompted Wirral planning authority to defer a decision while councillors went to see the scene of conflict for themselves.

This week they ruled in favour of the tennis clubs and allowed the floodlighting scheme to go ahead.

Objections against the venture included claims of light pollution and glare; that increased traffic would cause parking problems and noise and disturbance would be intensified.

Some objectors feared emergency vehicles would be unable to pass through because of double-parked cars; commercial use was no longer in keeping with the residential area and that the development would not preserve or enhance the character of the conservation area.

Planners, who recommended approval of the scheme, said in a report to the planning authority that traffic experts were of the view the proposed floodlighting would not generate extra traffic or parking demand.

But it might extend the hours of use of the courts into the late evening.

They felt the impact on highway safety or congestion in the road while play was in progress would not be significantly harmful.

They said further that the local authority pollution control division considered that the submitted lighting specification to be acceptable and they did not consider there would be any significant impact resulting from the lighting.

But to ensure there was no unacceptable impact on adjacent homes, a time condition would be attached.