The Madeira Terraces could receive a £9.5 million funding boost, with officials preparing to apply for a “levelling up” grant from the government within a matter of days.
Brighton and Hove City Council plans to submit a formal application for the money from the government’s Levelling Up Fund Round 2.
The government said that the “application window” opened on Friday (15 July) and would close on Tuesday 2 August.
And tomorrow (Tuesday 19 July) the Greater Brighton Economic Board is being asked to endorse the council’s application – along with funding requests from Worthing and Mid Sussex councils too.
Worthing Borough Council is bidding for £20 million to create a “Connected Cultural Mile”, including a revamp of the Lido and plans to transform the “Worthing Museum and Art Gallery into a nationally significant cultural hub”.
Mid Sussex District Council is applying for £18.5 million to revive part of the town centre with new homes and commercial space, upgraded digital infrastructure and a makeover for Church Walk.
A report to the Greater Brighton Economic Board, published last week, said: “The Madeira Terrace restoration will unlock economic, social and wellbeing opportunities for east Brighton and re-establish the eastern seafront as a culture and leisure destination for residents and visitors alike.
“The eastern half of the 865m Madeira Terrace grade II* seaside promenade and grandstand (currently derelict and inaccessible to the public), the Victorian Shelter Hall and the 200-year-old biodiverse Green Wall will be sensitively restored.
“The transformation of this significant blight and obstruction to seafront access and regeneration will once again connect high-deprivation communities such as the Bristol Estate, Kemp Town and Whitehawk to the beach and a reanimated Madeira Terrace.”
The council was awarded £9.5 million from the Levelling Up Fund Round 1 for the Kingsway to the Sea project in Hove.
Where is “Mid Sussex District Council ” ?
It refers to Burgess Hill, where the library and Martlets Hall were demolished and the site has been left as a barren expanse of crushed rubble for a year or two at least. The Marlets used to host many events, I saw Colin Blunstone there. Burgess Hill has expanded hugely with new housing estates covering fields all around, yet still is without the community facility that was previously there.
The council wouldn’t need to apply for this cash is they just stopped wasting so much money.
The renovation of the arches is a massively missed opportunity anyway, they should be putting small commercial units in each arch for small businesses (only) to use. With a minimum opening hours attached to it. That would be a great help the the hundreds of businesses in Brighton that just cannot afford the current shop prices. If would also make the area an interest piece, rather than some out dated walkway to nowhere.
Why did B&H Council prioritise Hove over the arches? I think all groups would agree that the arches are in a worse state and have a higher need – fenced off as they are. So why gain 9.5m for Hove in round one, rather than 9.5m for the arches in round 2 (which we may not get anyway!). We could already be working on the arches now rather than applying for money for them if the council had prioritised it differently. Makes no sense to me…..
So what happens to all the millions in council tax that the average resident would expect to be used to maintain the town — oops! we have to call it a “city” nowadays, though many would consider a very similar-sounding word to properly describe what the Brighton area has become, due entirely to years (decades?) of mismanagement.
Where DOES all that money go? It certainly isn’t spent on what most would consider essential council services.
Burgess Hill is the focus for this trough/tranche, helping to develop what is currently The very popular Urban Beach which returns to Burgess Hill on July 22 through to 11 September 2022. Opening hours 10am to 4pm
Location: just outside the town council’s Help Point.
Chilled water and Ice Cream will be available from the Help Point during mid-week opening hours.