Plans to turn the site of the former Four Winds pub in Falmouth into a dementia care home for the elderly have received mixed responses from the public.

At a consultation at the Dracaena Centre in Falmouth on Thursday afternoon, residents were asked to give their views on the proposals - currently at the pre-application stage - which supersede failed plans for a student accommodation block.

Steve Haskew, of developers Red One, said: "When we bought the site, route one was a care facility.

"We came to the town, did our due diligence, and quickly worked out that there was a massive under supply in purpose built student accommodation... a lot of houses in the town are rented out to students"

The company decided to offer a student housing solution, but when that drew local opposition and was rejected by Cornwall Council, it "reverted back to route one," and is now once again seeking permission for a care home.

The company is currently seeking planning permission for a change of use for the site, which would allow them to submit a second application, to build a care home of three storeys.

Asked if there was a risk, as some residents believe, that the project could be built and then turned into student accommodation instead of a care home, Mr Haskew said "what possible reason would we have to do that" when a care home had been the first plan. He also pointed out that it would not be allowed under Cornwall Council's emerging strategic plan.

And asked if Falmouth needed more care homes when Abbeyfield was about to build a new facility at Bosvale, he said he was not aware of and would "have to look into" those plans, but he felt Red One's facility could probably compliment rather than compete with Abbeyfield's by "accommodating what they don't have."

And he added that the building would take up less than a third of the site, as much of it was covered with protected trees, which would also screen the building from view, while a protected line of sight would remain unaffected.

Falmouth resident Vera Honey said she felt the new plans "make more sense" than the student accommodation proposals, although "something like a Premier Inn" would "make more sense" for the site.

Pam Cowan, of campaign group Save Our Falmouth, said the "general consensus" was that a care home "may, in principle, be  acceptable."

"However," she said, "there are fundamental concerns regarding the proposed massing and height, particularly for those in close proximity to the site who will be the most affected and therefore would wish it to be considerably reduced."

She added: "Regarding parking, it is deemed essential there should be sufficient parking not only for staff, but also for visitors.  The area surrounding the site already has parking problems and it is essential this is factored in when providing parking spaces."

Local Falmouth Town Councillor Anna Gillett said while the plans were "reasonably positive" the scale of the building was "problematic" - which had also been one of the issues with the earlier student accommodation proposal.She added: "There is also concern about parking and the sheer number of rooms, if they are proposing dementia care."

She expressed concerns that a successful change of use application would restrict what could be built at the site, and if a developer then wanted to build a hotel or pub there "they would have to go through this process again."

And she added: "It would be in keeping to put a small cul-de-sac there, four or five houses would fit quite nicely there."

The pre-application can be viewed on Cornwall Counil's planning page by searching for PA17/01265/PREAPP