A Catholic church has been granted planning permission to demolish its old church hall and build a new one on the same spot in Brighton.
The new three-storey Milton Road Community Centre will replace the existing two-storey premises in Milton Road, on the corner of Elm Grove, diagonally opposite St Joseph’s Church.
The scheme was approved by Brighton and Hove City Council’s Planning Committee in a meeting at Hove Town Hall yesterday (Wednesday 6 March).
The church said that the new building would be a “hub for our local community” and the number of full-time staff would go up from one to three.
The new building has been designed with spaces for different activities including a coffee lounge, meeting rooms and a hall for larger groups and events.
It is also expected to become a hub for Catholic student activity, something that is currently based by Falmer Railway Station.
The plans for the new building showed stone cladding on the ground floor exterior which drew a comparison with the stone-clad St Joseph’s Church across the road.
Labour councillor Joy Robinson was the only councillor to vote against the application. She said: “I’m really not happy with this design.
“It’s pretty awful. I’m really not happy with the stone cladding. It’s just horrible. It’ll be a blight on the area, frankly.”
Labour councillor Julie Cattell said that the proposed building’s stone cladding was similar to that on the grade II* listed St Joseph’s Church over the road.
Councillor Cattell said: “Every church is out of context with its surroundings. Looking at a close-up of the church, it is being replicated with modern materials.
“The existing (church hall) building is horrible. It has no frontage. It looks like a factory or workshop. Then you’ve got something much more exciting and interesting, making use of the corner.”
She said that the use of “through render” – where the colour was included in the mix – would be unsuitable for Brighton’s coastal climate because it was “not properly breathable”.
Brighton and Hove Independent councillor Mark Earthey said that he was glad that the building would be a community facility but he was not a fan of the design.
Councillor Earthy said: “To me, it looks absolutely hideous, completely out of keeping with the rest of the area. But that’s what we have.
“I’m also concerned about the rendering as in my ward that form of rendering in the sea air has become a catastrophe.”
The site of the church hall was once St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School – from 1879 until it moved to Davey Drive, in Hollingdean, in 1956.
The previous building, which housed the school, had formerly served as a church for Catholic soldiers in the 19th century.
The design is pretty poor. The architect on this needs to get a grip. completely out of keeping with the area.
It’s an improvement on what’s there now, but let’s face it anything would be an improvement.
The usual ego-dump of a blah design with no thought for the area it is supposed to be enhancing or community it is supposed to be serving. Back to the drawing board please. Hanover and Elm Grove deserves real architecture.
I like the design. A big improvement on the current building which is very uninviting.
I really like the design.. it can become another hub in the area
I like the design! The facade is more open than the current one. The colours are natural and seem to blend in well with adjacent buildings. It will be so good to have a brandnew community hall with accessible facilities in this area. Looking forward to all kinds of different uses as a true community asset. I find it strange that any new builds tend to get so much push back in Brighton.
What’s the point in replacing an ugly church hall with an even uglier one when there is an opportunity to build something really attractive and community-fitting? Let’s see some decent architecture in Hanover and Elm Grove which complements the area for goodness sake.
Aesthetic objectivity aside, I’m happy to see more community infrastructure into the city. Assets like these are so important to fostering community and providing outreach.
I like the design. The facade is much more open and the colours are natural, linking well with adjacent buildings. Looking forward to this new community centre, with easy access and modern facilities. Should be a real asset to this area. I don’t understand why in Brighton there is always this pushback to any new built proposals.
I like it.