SPOTLIGHT: Solar panels on Eastbourne Levels given go ahead
By Rebecca Maer Solar panels will be installed across an agricultural flood plain either side of the railway track into Eastbourne after councillors approved the scheme. They voted narrowly in favour – with three for, two against and one absention – after the scheme was discussed at last night’s Eastbourne Borough Council planning meeting. The […]
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SPOTLIGHT: Sovereign Harbour flats scheme still too big, say councillors
By Rebecca Maer A controversial retirement scheme planned for Sovereign Harbour was last night deferred for the second time as councillors dug their heels in over the scale of the design, rejecting a recommendation to approve it. The original plan for three blocks at Martinique Way at the edge of a shingle beach has already […]
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SPOTLIGHT: Have your say on Orchard Road apartments plan
By Huw Oxburgh, BBC-funded Local Democracy Reporter Council plans to build town centre apartments in Eastbourne on the site of the former magistrates’ court are now open for comment. In a planning application validated last week, Eastbourne Borough Council has put forward fresh proposals to build housing on the site in Old Orchard Road. The […]
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SPOTLIGHT: Plan for 100 homes to replace ‘eyesore’ car park
By Huw Oxburgh, BBC-funded Local Democracy Reporter A developer has submitted plans to replace a multi-storey car park near the station in Eastbourne with more than 100 homes. In plans validated by Eastbourne Borough Council last week, developer Elstree Land is seeking planning permission to demolish the now-closed multi-storey car park in Junction Road and […]
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SPOTLIGHT: When is Fort Fun re-opening?
Prominent seafront site Fort Fun is on the verge of partially re-opening with the revamped indoor play area. The company developing the site is about to finally sign a five-year lease with Eastbourne Borough Council. The refurbishment has been dogged by legal delays and repeated anti-social behaviour at the former fun park. Vandals have […]
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SPOTLIGHT: Controversial flats plan reduced by just one storey
A controversial seven-storey “oversized” coastal retirement scheme will be lowered by just one floor, according to a revised planning application. The new plan for the plot on the western edge of Sovereign Harbour also reduces the number of apartments by eight to 128 and changes the appearance of the building. But the residents’ association would […]
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SPOTLIGHT: Developer bids to replace one house with 20 flats
By Huw Oxburgh, BBC-funded Local Democracy Reporting Service A developer has submitted plans for an apartment building in Eastbourne to replace a large detached house. In an application submitted to Eastbourne Borough Council, a developer is seeking outline planning permission to demolish the home at 273 Kings Drive and replace it with a building containing […]
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SPOTLIGHT: Council paid developers more than £750,000
By Huw Oxburgh, BBC-funded Local Democracy Reporter Wealden District Council has paid out more than three-quarters of a million pounds in appeal costs since January 2021. The single largest payout resulted from the council’s decision to refuse the 700-home Mornings Mill development on farmland at Willingdon, Eastbourne, which was approved on appeal. One Labour councillor […]
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SPOTLIGHT: Planning inspector approves care home conversion
By Huw Oxburgh, BBC-funded Local Democracy Reporting Service Controversial plans to convert a former Eastbourne care home have been approved on appeal. A planning inspector has approved retrospective proposals for an 11-bedroom property at 13 Gorringe Road — a building which had formed part of a care home known as The Shires. Eastbourne planners had refused […]
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SPOTLIGHT: East Sussex pothole reports double
Reports by residents of potholes in East Sussex more than doubled last year. In figures released in response to a Freedom of Information (FOI) request, East Sussex County Council said it received 26,309 reports of potholes and other carriageway defects in 2022/23. This was more than double the previous financial year (2021/22), which […]
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