D-day for Brighton firm’s controversial plans for 18-storey flats

A Brighton firm’s controversial plans to build a big block of flats in Newhaven are due to be decided by Lewes District Council tomorrow (Wednesday 17 April).

The council’s Planning Committee is expected to consider an application from KSD Support Services, based at Patcham Place, London Road, Brighton.

The company has applied for permission to build 126 flats and duplexes on land in Beach Road. The scheme, designed by Brighton architects Morgan Carn, also includes commercial space.

KSD sold an old waste site known as One Moulsecoomb Way, in Brighton, to a developer who turned it into hundreds of students flats. The waste recycling centre there moved to Newhaven.

Permission was granted for a previous scheme at the Beach Road site, close to the entrance of Newhaven Port. The plans for a mixed-use development including an 80-bedroom hotel have never been built out.

The latest scheme includes an 18-storey tower — an element of the proposals which has proven particularly controversial among local residents. In all, the council had received about 200 letters of objection, raising a variety of concerns.

The objections include a petition from Newhaven’s Liberal Democrat group which has been signed by 187 people. It reads: “While we welcome the development of brownfield sites, they must be in keeping with the rest of Newhaven and meet the town’s needs.

“The 18-storey high tower will be higher than Nelson’s Column and will completely change not just the local street scene but the whole of Newhaven.”

The petition adds: “The previous plans would have delivered a fantastic opportunity but these plans offer nothing. There is no affordable housing offered in this development. There is not sufficient parking and there will be a major issue with over-development and shadowing.

“It would be fantastic if KSD would work with East Side residents and find a development that works for the community.

“We accept this is a brownfield site and we accept it should be used for housing but we don’t accept a tower that offers no affordable housing and will change the look of Newhaven’s skyline.”

Objections have also been raised by Newhaven Port and Properties Ltd. The company, which is the harbour authority responsible for maintaining the port, said that it owned a small part of the application site and wanted to preserve its rights over the land.

While this land dispute would not prevent the grant of planning permission, it could mean that the scheme as applied for is not feasible in its current state.

Despite strong objections, the application is being recommended for approval by council planning officials, albeit with some caveats. These include the need for further evidence on the effects of the scheme on traffic as well as on odour and fire safety.

Officials also said that planning permission should be tied to a legal agreement to be signed within three months because of a need for “certainty” on the infrastructure needed to support the scheme.

A report to the committee said: “The proposed development is in a sustainable location where reliance on the use of private motor vehicles would be mitigated by access to local shops and services, employment and public transport hubs.

“Measures have been taken to encourage the use of sustainable modes of transport and ensure that the building is energy-efficient, with a good deal of the energy it would consume being generated by renewables or low-emission technology.

“It is considered that the proposed development, through regeneration of the area, uplift in population and local spend and provision of commercial space would contribute to an uplift in the local economy.”