Antisocial behaviour at the Level is now worse than it was before its multimillion pound revamp as its flagship cafe remains empty.
Members of the Level Communities Forum say the area around the cafe, which has been closed for months because of a mystery leak, has become a free-for-all for drug dealers
They hope that Sussex Police will open a temporary police station in one of the community rooms by the fountains, as they have been asked to clear it for that use.
The council and police say they are looking into improving lighting at the south end and there are extra patrols at night in the area.
But the forum is calling on Brighton and Hove City Council to get the cafe back up and running as a community venture and improve the park so it can be enjoyed by everyone again.
Chair Maureen Winder said: “The cafe leaseholder just went and then after that everything seemed to go downhill quite rapidly.
“The graffiti started – some just leads to more, and it’s never-ending. We can’t understand where this leak is coming from.
“The damage to some of the toilets has been so severe they have had to close.
“The gardener is doing his absolute best to get it looking reasonable but he can only do so much.
“I think one of the big problems in our opinion is that the council has always looked for a commercial leasehold rather than a community based one.
“Then they have left all the responsibility to these commercial tenants who can’t keep up with it.
“The payments they have to make for the lease are so high because of the problems with the building.
“We need a community based cafe because that makes The Level a safer community based place.”
Deputy chair of the forum Roz Reyburn said: “They got the heritage lottery funding and spent a fortune on it and now it’s in a worse state than I have ever seen it.
“It was a complete waste of money and it’s an insult to all the creativity that went into it.”
The forum says it has been talking to the Open Market about using the cafe, and Brighton University about potential art projects in the park.
The whole park underwent a major restoration from 2012 to 2013, using a £2.2 million Heritage Lottery Fund grant.
The cafe itself cost £1 million, according to construction company Thomas Sinden, which was contracted by the council to build it.
In 2020, despite being under warranty, the council had to shell out £77,000 to replace the roof, which had sprung a leak.
Although antisocial behaviour has never entirely disappeared from the park, in past years Sussex Police and the council visibly worked together to tackle it.
But as the city recovers from the pandemic, the communities forum fears The Level is being left behind.
Mrs Winder said: “The danger is in painting a negative picture is it makes it seem aa though nothing can ever change.
“We have been involved in it for such a long time and everyone wants it to improve that the question is how do we turn that corner.
“It could become a wonderful centre for culture in the city.
“We have got lots of positive ideas and with a little bit of help and support we could do something for the wider community.
“It wasn’t as sad years ago as neglected as it is now. You can’t just have funding and then allow it to run down.”
A council spokesperson said: “We have given the police access to the community rooms at The Level, and they are exploring how these could be used to help with addressing antisocial behaviour.
“As part of our ongoing commitment to tackle anti-social behaviour, the council has recently employed a drugs worker to help tackle drug abuse and the causes of addiction across the city. We take this seriously and know more work needs to be done.
“The council commissions a local youth service called Brighton Streets. They are regularly visiting and spending time at The Level, engaging with young people.
“We have previously fixed several leaks at the Level Café. But there remains an ongoing problem with water getting in underneath.
“We are continuing to try and work out what the problem is with the water levels, and are monitoring water levels and water usage at the site to try and work out the root cause.
“We are committed to resolving these issues as soon as we can so that the café can eventually reopen.
“We’re setting up a programme of work to address the problem of graffiti. Unfortunately it is an ongoing issue. We have previously painted over graffiti at the café but it has reappeared.”
Chief Inspector Andy Saville said: “The Level is a cornerstone of central Brighton and making sure people feel safe to enjoy it is a key focus for us as a division.
“Sussex Police has recently launched the online StreetSafe toolkit, which allows members of the public to anonymously highlight areas where they feel unsafe or uneasy.
“Information from StreetSafe has already underpinned extra night-time patrols around The Level and we are working with Brighton and Hove City Council to bring enhanced lighting to the south end of the park and to look at tackling instances of graffiti in the area.
“PCSOs also carry out daily patrols around The Level as part of their routine community engagement work.
“Working in partnership, the council has allowed us to use one of their community rooms as an engagement hub at The Level, providing a visible, reassuring police presence and a clear point of contact for anyone with concerns or for people seeking information.
“This project is at an early stage, with the first step being to clear the room in preparation for use.
“Tackling anti-social behaviour and associated issues is a team effort between Sussex Police and our partners in the community, which also looks at addressing the underlying causes of criminal and anti-social behaviour.
“Public reporting is central to us understanding the needs of our communities, so it’s vital that any concerns are reported to us either online via the Sussex Police website, by calling 101 or 999 in an emergency.
“There is also the online StreetSafe toolkit, more information about which can be found here: https://www.sussex.police.uk/notices/street-safe/street-safe/”
Wasn’t this all the brainchild of former Green Councillor Ian Davey with the bike shop, cafe, and gender neutral toilets?
Hopefully current Green councillors won’t be so cycling obsessed and realise what is likely to happen with such areas and the need for cctv and policing.
Apparently Ian has moved to Worthing so residents there should be wary 😏
“… we could do something a building the wider”
What is THAT supposed to mean?
It’s hardly surprising the building isn’t fit for purpose if that’s the level of education nowadays.
I can’t see that quote anywhere in the article.
This is surely a very straight forward problem to solve?
With no tenant in the cafe there is no continual adult presence overseeing the property and the areas around it. That tenant doesn’t have to be a ‘community-based one’ – the cafe simply needs to be open longer hours and serving food people want to buy. You then get plenty of people around, day and night, and the anti social behaviour moves elsewhere.
The catchment area for a cafe and restaurant is already huge, and with more local flats are going up all the time.
The problems are obvious:
1) The original build went wrong if there is a recurring water leak they have yet to solve. How many experts does it take before a building is made water tight?
2)The original design was a bit fanciful and, as much as we love the virtue signalling green roof, they are not a good idea for a commercial building. One of the ideas for a green roof is to use local resources and thereby reduce costs. In this case it has meant a very expensive roof, that needs continual attention.
3) The original ‘Velo cafe’ seemed like another green idea, encouraging cyclists like me, but the food was expensive and I could never find anything there I wanted to eat. Maybe it would work better as a family pizza restaurant. With the right security, it could also work as a proper evening restaurant with outdoor space.
4) I’m guessing the council want a high-paying tenant, and to offer a full re-pairing lease, and that’s what makes it high risk to take on.
5) The hard drug issue is well known in that area and one or two of the nearby pubs are a bit rough as well. But you keep trouble at bay by establishing the space as belonging to someone else, and by maintaining a presence.
The rest of the Level is still a great place to hang out, and a well-used community facility. Let’s not muck this up.
Another Green Win!
I remember Councillor Pete West swearing blind that there was money for permanently stationed park rangers when the initial plan to ‘improve’ the Level was sanctioned. Sad but glad we got out of Dodge City over a year ago. Let’s hope for some better politicians running the city after the next election.
I remember Councillor Pete West swearing blind that there was money for permanently stationed park rangers when the initial plan to ‘improve’ the Level was sanctioned. Sad but glad we got out of Dodge City over a year ago. Let’s hope for some better politicians running the city after the next election.
BHCC was warned repeatedly during the so called ‘community consultations’ that their redevelopment plans forThe Level would increase ASB and cause trouble for its upkeep. But, this greedy Council wasn’t interested in local knowledge or grassroots planning preferring instead a top down approach to chase the big pots of HLF funding (which frankly was never needed.) 6mil spent, without adequate funding for upkeep. Just look at the place now. Meanwhile, having messed up all the freshly sown lawns in the Valley Gardens (and all the money needed to put that right) the Council has decided to dump their Covid test and trace monstrosity on a third of the North side open green… Thus destroying yet more grass areas… which, in turn will require yet more funding to put it right. Unbelievable stupidity from beginning to end.
The staff at the NHS test and trace centre were playing football in the afternoon sun on Wednesday,
because they had nothing to do, I have yet to see any public use it. I can’t understand why it is so big.
It was an NHS test site, which has been abandoned but not removed. But who do you call??
I agree with all the above, but we STILL need to get rid of the Green’s and Labour. As usual they rely on funding for the initial improvements and then forget it needs CONTINUOUS upkeep. At this rate there will be the same problems at valley gardens and Stanmer Park. We need absolute zero tolerance with all anti-social behaviour and that has to be ongoing, not just a ‘crackdown’. I have travelled around other cities, and quite honestly Brighton is the least ‘Green’ of any. And it’s the only Green city in the country! Thereby lies the moral of the tale…..
“The cafe cost £1m” And now it’s closed! Someone should be held accountable for this. A criminal waste of money.
It closed during the pandemic like so many other businesses.
How much? One million? Two million? Six million? Millions for a leaky wooden shack with grass on the roof? Something isn’t right. How can anyone justify spending even a quarter million on a glorified shed? Time someone with a brain had a serious look at council spending.
No wonder the town is falling apart.
Oh, sorry. I forgot. We’re supposed to call it a “city” now.
The cafe was a great outdoor resource during the summer of 2020 but like so many businesses it obviously could not survive the pandemic.
It had ceased to be a Velo cafe ages ago. That was a crazy idea, as the people who would most likely use it would be families and older people who could be around during the day. It had turned into a nice pizza cafe, with tea, coffee and cakes. That’s what is needed – a nice garden cafe, like the kiosk in Pavilion Gardens. But why it had to be so big is a mystery.
I was involved in the original consultations as a local resident. Like most local residents I was against the idea of a skatepark as I felt that would destroy the peaceful aspect of the park. Wherever there is a concentration of young men – and it is mainly young men who use it – other people are put off using the area. As a side issue, I have always thought there is scope to involve young women by having women-only sessions with instructors.
We need a decent cafe, which doesn’t have to be so big, with plenty of outside tables with umbrellas. We need to encourage a more diverse range of people to use the skatepark. And now that the pandemic has receded a bit (it’s certainly not over), we need a team of volunteers of all ages to look after the park and keep it tidy – a bit like the volunteer team at the Pavilion. But as someone said above, there needs to be money spent on continuing management and maintenance.
For some reason Brighton Council is reluctant to do the obvious and keep park cafes going – Saunders Park was another victim of it charging too much for repairs to its leaseholders. Classes were run in the other level building. Fairly obvious if people are around using cafes and other premises there is less space for drug use etc. But please make them affordable for families, not upmarket. There used to be park keepers. Maybe one is justified at the Level. Seems Council is just concerned with bikes & dreaming up trendy projects .