An ambitious scheme to regenerate Hove seafront is to be scaled down after inflation pushed costs up by almost £4 million.
The Kingsway to the Sea scheme that includes plans for outdoor sports facilities and a new café, had a budget of £12.99m approved by councillors in 2022 with £9.5m coming from the Government’s Levelling Up fund.
The scheme also includes tennis and padel courts, a skate park, pump track and roller area.
Work started in February to prepare the area for a new outdoor sports hub building.
However, rising construction costs and the current national shortages of materials and labour have resulted in unprecedented cost inflation and a funding gap of £3.9m.
Project officers, designers and construction partners have worked hard to identify ways to reduce building costs with minimal impact on the project and have proposed taking out some features to reduce the funding gap to £2,220,000.
As the project is in excess of what can be afforded, councillors at the next Strategy, Finance and City Regeneration Committee will be asked to review options to further reduce the scope of features in the park and the associated costs.
Council leader and chair of the Strategy, Finance and City Regeneration Committee, Bella Sankey said: “Our new park on Hove seafront is going to be transformative and provide for cultivated green spaces, outdoor leisure and activities, and improved access to our seafront.
“Sadly, rampant inflation means the costs of construction have been steadily rising everywhere and we are also being affected by a national shortage of materials and labour.
“Our fantastic community and residents have inspired and led this project from the outset and worked closely with council officers at all stages to ensure we’re delivering what people want.
“We’ll be using this information to prioritise what features we should retain and we’re also asking residents to provide any further feedback on how we adapt to these increased costs.”
More information about the facilities and cost savings proposed is in the SFCR committee report.
If you would like to share your feedback on which facilities currently proposed are most important to you, please email KingswaytotheSea@brighton-hove.gov.uk by Friday 30 June.
Please consider doggies.the pitch and put golf courses just east of the lagoon .they are well used at moment by owners who have very little green space available.it also helps keeping the seafront and wish park clear.
I think destroying our hove is narrow-minded thinking……are we gonna have park wardens so look after them its an ideal for piss heads to ruin….
1..leave the lawns they are loved so look after them
2.spend millions on an indoor large community centre that caters all n keep them safe
3 you ideas will look gr8 for one summer then pointless
4 a large community centre can look after the needs and can be used 12months of the year regardless of weather
I agree that the drinkers will pitch back up in tents
As mr kyle said not so long ago,” brighton and hove will be up there with the likes of…wait for it…nice france and barcelona spain”. can you believe that anyone could say that…walking around this city?
Why have they spent tens of thousands with the White boarding surely just a temp fence would have done. So much money just wasted.
Why don’t you scrap the cycle lane road changes that will stop all the families that currently visit parking and increase pollution due to queuing traffic?
Peehaps the sports hub could be reduced from two stories to one, which would be better for all the residents opposite as well.
Keep the tennis courts (just resurface) and mow lawn on pitch and putt. Use rest to update king Alfred
A couple of cricket shipping containers should do the trick. Everyone loves playing cricket in a shipping container.
The money should be used for levelling up pavements and the promenade both of which are ill patched and left likely to cause people to fall. Lawned areas should be kept for free play by all the community . In particular the idea of a sand games area requiring lights and a huge fence next to Rockwater would be expensive to maintain and unappealing to the eye. In strong winds the sand would blow everywhere.
That sports hub is way too big. The upkeep will be too much in the long run. How about a smaller, less ambitious building?
Still need somewhere people without beach huts can leave stuff safely.maybe some of the sports bits will only attract a select few, whereas park can be used by all. Its important to remember older and disabled people and their access to the sea. Also people’s access to shade.