A Newhaven councillor has accused Brighton and Hove City Council of abandoning vulnerable homeless residents in a block of flats in his ward where they are receiving little or no support.
Kendal Court in Newhaven become notorious in 2018 after seven people living there died in two years.
Councillor James MacCleary says although the council may not mean to abandon people with acute mental health problems there, but that has been the effect.
He and his colleagues on Lewes District Council have been raising the issue with Brighton and Hove City Council over the last year.
But an incident in which residents stood on the roof abusing people in the pub garden next door has prompted him to write directly to the chair of the housing committee.
He said: “There are two main concerns from my perspective. Firstly, the wellbeing of residents in the building itself. Brighton and Hove City Council may not treat them as supported, but they are clearly in need of support.
“My longstanding ward colleague, Cllr Graham Amy, can recount accounts of residents needing direct support with basic needs like food and clothing.
“I do not think that councillors at Brighton and Hove City Council have been trying to abandon people with acute mental health issues in Newhaven, but that has been the effect.
“More than one resident has died at the building in the last year. Secondly, there have been numerous anti-social behaviour incidents with local residents becoming increasingly concerned about their own safety and that of their families.
“Earlier this month, images were shared of individuals on the roof of the building throwing abuse at people in the neighbouring pub garden.
“That is affecting the quality of life of residents and leading to hostility towards people in the building.
“The owner of the building now wishes to expand it. It is already an entirely unsuitable building being a converted office building. It’s clearly not suitable for expansion.”
Nikki Daniels, who with her sisters Kerri and Natalie runs The Engineer pub next door, said they regularly had trouble from residents who threw items into their pub garden, abused customers and exposed themselves from their curtainless windows.
She said: “when Brighton started putting homeless people there, to start with the residents were nice and they just wanted to get their lives back on track.
“But it gradually got worse as when they’re bunched together, they’re not the nicest bunch of people.
“One of the residents threatened my sister with a heavy glass ashtray when she was pregnant.
