Police cordoned off Westfield Common in Westfield Common Road after the body of a man was found in a wooded area near the common at around 10.40am.
Hampshire Constabulary confirmed the incident was “not being treated as suspicious” and that the man’s family has been notified.
It comes after police were called at 9.44am to a report of a missing man from the Southampton area.
Reacting to the news, residents said they were shocked and saddened by what happened, with the popular walking spot, which leads down to a beach, cordoned off by police for around three hours.
Speaking to the Echo, Mike Burnet, who lives in Coach Road opposite the common, said: “It’s so sad, sometimes you see the police along the beach conducting training exercises, so at first that’s what I thought it was, but then you don’t expect to see the cordon.
“It’s just so sad because you don’t like to hear of something like this happening, I just hope they didn’t suffer. It’s a shock, it’s usually a very quiet road.”
READ MORE: Police cordon in Coach Road, Hamble
He added: “I went for a walk around 10.30am and everything was fine.
“When I was walking back along the beach to head home, that’s when there were four or five police officers on the beach who wanted to know where I was going.
“When I came back up onto the road the cordon was in place, blocking off the main road to the car park.
“It’s a quiet place and you never see something like this at the end of the road.
“It’s concerning because you hope it’s nothing serious. There are lots of families around here who walk their dogs along the beach.”
Police left the scene shortly before 1.30pm, with the common open to members of the public after the cordon was removed.
