Issue 46
Summer 2016
British Airways i360 to sponsor a Snowdog Page 2
Brighton Belle launch delayed
Zip wires to replace the wheel Page 4
Page 4
£4m bid goes in to start Brighton Terraces re-build A bid for £4m has been submitted to the government to kick-start the regeneration of Brighton seafront’s Madeira Terraces.
Picture shows idea of how Terraces could look with business units The money would come from the Coastal Communities Fund. It would be combined with a similar sum from the council for the first phase of a threestage rebuilding of the Terraces. This first Phase would complete in 2019/20. Other sections would then be developed on a commercial basis by 2023. An estimated 145 jobs would be created, adding £5m a year to the local economy. It says the plan would “introduce innovative commercial and leisure uses to the structure in order to breathe life back into Brighton’s eastern seafront”. Potential mixed uses for the Grade 2 listed structure include an iconic hotel, youth hostel, arts centre, gallery, catering, boutique retail and start-up space for creative and digital firms. These would form part of a wider planned regeneration of the eastern seafront. In the
pipeline are proposals for a new arena and convention centre at Black Rock, a sea swimming centre at Peter Pan’s Playground, £1.85m improvements to the Volk’s Railway and a zip-wire attraction replacing the Brighton Wheel. A buoyant visitor economy, strong local support for regenerating the area and high demand for commercial space on the seafront are cited as reasons why the plan would succeed. Close working with businesses, interest groups and Historic England are promised. Built in 1897 and around half a mile long, the Grade ll listed Madeira Terraces is thought to be the longest cast iron structure in the world. The Terraces were created as a covered promenade to attract tourists from London on the new railway of the 1800s.
Market Trends by David Maslen
The first quarter of 2016 saw the property market move at an accelerated speed, as investors scrambled to complete purchases before the new stamp duty tax came into place on 1st April. EU Referendum In the run up to the EU Referendum, the market slowed slightly as the anticipation of an unknown economic landscape caused by a Leave vote made both buyers and sellers more cautious. While the market was certainly less busy during this period, it in no way halted, with keen buyers, requiring new properties for a multitude of reasons, keeping the property market ticking over during this uncertain time. Since the results came in on 24th June, activity has increased once more, with one property selling at significantly higher than the asking price and another receiving 17 viewings and two offers the same day as it went on the market. The future of the UK remains uncertain. However, it will be at least two years before we officially leave the EU and the property market in Brighton and Hove remains optimistic. We predict demand will continue to outweigh supply, keeping property prices high and people buying. Supply and demand Brighton and Hove’s geographical location, edged by the South Downs and the English Channel, means there are very little development opportunities in and around the city. This, teamed with the fact that Brighton and Hove is an incredibly desirable place to live, means demand is always higher than supply. So long as this trend continues, it is unlikely Brighton and Hove’s property market will suffer any long-term or extreme hits, regardless of the eventual economic outcome of the EU Referendum. We will be keeping a close eye on market trends over the coming months but for now, it’s business as usual for Brighton and Hove.
Contactless pay and display machines National just the ticket for drivers highways and transport survey
Most parking machines in Brighton & Hove could be switched to pay-by-card as part of £1.8m investment proposals to improve reliability of parking machines. The proposal would scrap around 650 of the 800 oldest machines which take coins. They would be replaced with machines which accept both chip-and-pin or contactless card payments. Over 400 of the machines need replacing anyway as some are seven years past their normal life. One hundred and fifty newer machines now in use would be adapted to accept cards as a well as coins. Drivers will also still be able to pay for their parking in cash at any of the city’s 150 PayPoint outlets by quoting the location code for where they parked. This is displayed on machines and street signs. New machines would also have the capacity for drivers to key in their registration number. In future it could also make possible a web-based system showing areas with vacant parking spaces.
Impetus for the change comes from the fact a new 12-sided one-pound coin is being introduced in 2017. Converting all machines to accept the new coins would cost over £180,000. It would take over 12 years to recoup this cost through savings, by which time the machines would be obsolete. By contrast, costs of installing mostly pay-by-card machines would be £1.5m. The council says the change would cut cash-handling risks and reduce losses and damage to machines from theft. £150,000 has been stolen from parking machines since 2008.
Local people are being asked for their views on Brighton & Hove’s highways and transport services as part of a national survey – from the condition of roads and footpaths to the quality of cycling facilities. The questionnaire was sent to a random sample of around 3,300 of the city’s residents. Their answers will be compared with views of other members of the public across England and Scotland. Results from the National Highways and Transport public satisfaction survey will be published in October. Brighton & Hove City Council is one of 106 Local Authorities to sign up to the survey that will ask the same questions to all residents, whether they live in Brighton & Hove, Bradford or Bournemouth. The survey, in its ninth year is the largest collaboration between councils in the country, offering the opportunity to compare results and to work together.
British Airways i360 Joins Snowdogs Pack and Heads for the Big City
Snowline Media presents
Ocean Film Festival World Tour Corn Exchange - Fri 2 Sep 2016 The Ocean Film Festival showcases the world’s most amazing ocean films filmed above and below the water’s surface! Brought to you by the producers of the Banff Film Festival UK Tour, this extraordinary collection of short films document the beauty and power of the ocean, celebrating the divers, kayakers, swimmers, surfers and oceanographers who live for the sea’s salt spray; who chase the crests of waves; and who marvel at the mysteries of the big blue. Immerse yourself in the wonders of the ocean without getting your feet wet! Visit www.oceanfilmfestival.co.uk for more details.
British Airways i360, which is conceived and designed by Marks Barfield Architects, is the latest organisation to sponsor a Snowdog as part of Snowdogs by the Sea. The extraordinary public art trail will see more than 40 artist-designed giant Snowdog sculptures appear across Brighton and Hove during autumn 2016, in support of local charity, Martlets Hospice. In an exciting twist, the British Airways i360 Snowdog will travel to London and be positioned on a plinth at Victoria train station where, for eight weeks, it will add some Brighton style to the capital. The Snowdog will have her own social media presence and will be named ‘Brighton Belle’, in honour of the London to Brighton Pullman train which once connected the capital with the coast. British Airways i360 CEO Eleanor Harris said: “Snowdogs by the Sea art trail will be a wonderful opportunity to showcase the creativity of the city to locals and visitors alike, while also raising essential funds for Martlets Hospice. We are particularly excited that our Snowdog, Brighton Belle, will be at London Victoria station to welcome passengers onto the Brighton train.” Artists will be commissioned to design each of the Snowdogs, ensuring a unique identity for each one. The models, inspired by The Snowman and The Snowdog, the popular sequel to the Sussex-based Raymond Briggs' classic book and television adaptation, will be auctioned off after the trail and all proceeds will go to Martlets. The idea follows in the footsteps of similar projects run by Wild in Art in other cities and is expected to raise thousands for the hospice and attract tens of thousands of people to Brighton and Hove.
Piling work recommences at Rampion
NEWS IN BRIEF Residents 'wheelie' love their recycling bins Residents taking part in a trial of recycling wheelie bins in Brighton & Hove have heralded the new scheme a success. They show that the scheme has been very well received and is already helping to improve recycling in the city. Residents describe the scheme as ‘fantastic’ and ‘a great improvement’ and have also commented on cleaner streets, and ease of use. The trial in Hangleton and South Portslade, was launched in November last year when wheelie bins were delivered to 3,900 households in 80 streets.The council has already received letters from residents in other areas of the city asking for wheelie bins to be introduced in their wards
Pile Upending Tool Ready for Rampion Work
With the black bream spawning season at a close, piling work to install wind turbine foundations at Rampion has recommenced while disposal of the two unexploded ordnance devices found 3km offshore is planned to take place over the summer. Onshore the 27km underground cable route, which transports the power from the point the cables come ashore at Brooklands Pleasure Park to the planned substation at Twineham, is developing well with around 60% of the ducting installation now complete. Horizontal directional drilling, a trenchless method of installing underground ducting and cabling has taken place under 20 monopile foundations, each weighing the railway just north of Brooklands, the between 500 and 800 tonnes depending on River Adur and A283 and the A27, to water depth, have already been installed and minimise the impact on the environment and to avoid disruption to local roads. over the next four to five months two jack Similar work is now planned on the final up barges - the MPI Discovery and Pacific drill site, to cross the beach and the A259 to Orca – will be deployed to install the remaining 96 foundations, by using a 1,000 keep traffic moving along the coast road. Throughout the development process the tonne crane to lift each foundation upright Rampion project has consulted with the before being lowered and piled into the local community and continues to provide sea bed. The two unexploded devices, discovered information on construction activities. Rampion recently worked with West Sussex earlier this year along the offshore export County Council to change an approved cable route and thought to date from route for construction vehicles to avoid the WWII, are also planned to be disposed of southern section of Ham Road, Worthing, this summer after permission was granted following local feedback. As part of the by the Marine Management Organisation ongoing communications, homes and (MMO). Commercial and recreational sea businesses in close proximity to the users will be informed of the routine construction work at Brooklands were controlled explosion in advance and of a notified ahead of the drilling work taking 1km radius safety exclusion zone during place. the event. The 400MW 116 turbine project being built 13km off the Sussex coast by E.ON, the UK Green Investment Bank plc and Canadian energy company Enbridge, will, when complete provide enough electricity to supply the equivalent of around 300,000 homes and reduce C02 emissions by up to 600,000 tonnes a year. The project is due to be completed in 2018.
Changes to the summer 'Breeze' bus service The ‘Breeze up to the Downs’ buses are getting ready for summer with longer services running seven days a week. The 77 bus service between Brighton Pier and Devil’s Dyke is now running seven days a week throughout the summer and will run later, with the last bus coming back from Devil’s Dyke at 8.35pm. People can also breeze up to Stanmer Park and Ditchling Beacon on the 78 and 79 buses every Saturday and Sunday throughout the year. A special ‘Breeze Return’ fare of £4.50 is available and up to two children per adult can travel for free.
Work starts on the City Plan Part Two - have your say Residents, businesses and developers will be able to take part in a citywide consultation on Part Two of the City Plan, which started 30 June. Part Two follows on from the recently adopted City Plan Part One which set out the overarching planning strategy for accommodating growth in the city, including the city’s housing target and employment land requirements to 2030.
The City Plan Part Two will contain the remaining development site allocations to meet the development needs that will be used to assess planning applications in the city. This initial round of consultation will be asking people what planning matters they think should be included in the Plan, from how to make sure housing sites deliver a good mix of housing; how best to manage the range of retail uses in shopping centres; to how to ensure new development helps create well designed places. It will be asking people if they have sites they wish the council to consider allocating for development in the Plan. City Plan Part Two will take around three years to complete. The aim is to streamline the number of development
management policies, making them easier to understand and simplifying the process for those applying for planning permission. For example, at the moment there are six policies relating to shop fronts and it is suggested that these will be combined into one policy. The City Plan Part Two is divided into 12 topic areas, so people will be able to go straight to the area they are interested in. These are housing; economy and employment; retail and town centre uses; tourism; transport and travel; biodiversity and open spaces; pollution, water and energy resources; design; heritage; community facilities; student accommodation and traveller accommodation. The draft plan will set out in more detail how to provide the 13,200 homes that are needed in the city.
Consultation will run for 12 weeks. From 30 June you can take part online at http://www.brighton-hove.gov.uk/cityplan-part2 by email planningpolicy@brighton-hove.gov.uk or by writing to City Plan Part 2, Scoping Document Planning Policy, Brighton & Hove City Council, Room 201, Kings House, Grand Avenue, Hove, BN3 2LS.
‘Brighton Belle’ to be launched in early 2017 The ‘Brighton Belle’ restoration project is being undertaken by the 5BEL Trust.
The Belle is still on target to return to the British mainline and will see the allimportant mainline running tests being
carried out in the final quarter of this year. However, a decision has been taken to delay the train's entry into passenger-carrying service until early 2017. The principal issue has been the discovery that sharp knibs in the core of galvanised wiring conduits had fouled the densely-packed cable runs. For safety and reliability reasons, the work had to be carried out again using a different mounting method. There have also been lengthy delays in the delivery of wheel sets, as well as an unsuccessful search for a gas water boiler to complete the kitchen in car 85. Altogether, this has added four months to the restoration schedule as well as extra expense.
Zip wires could replace Brighton Wheel Two 300 yard-long zip wires could replace the Brighton Wheel now it is removed from the seafront. The wheel's operator Paramount Entertainment has applied to replace it with the zip wires running from a 65ft tower to a landing area on the beach. Planning permission for the wheel, which opened in 2011, ran out at the end of May ahead of the proposed opening of the i360 tower further along the promenade.
The Brighton Wheel, sited east of the pier, opened in 2011
The council said the £1.7m Brighton Zip would be the largest such ride in Sussex. Operators hope to open this summer. "Now we have a proposal with much less visual impact for the neighbours. An attraction on that site is desirable because it brings life to the area" said council leader Warren Morgan.
Bus companies help to tackle air pollution One of England’s first Low Emission Zones has made progress thanks to cooperation between Brighton & Hove City Council and local bus companies. Local bus firms are spending millions upgrading their vehicle fleets, with brand new cleaner buses. Air quality in Brighton’s most polluted streets was improving – down 21 per cent since 2012. However the worst areas, around North Street and Western Road, still breach EU law. Those two roads have, since 2015, formed a bus-based low emission zone. Most air pollution there comes from buses because other vehicle movements are heavily restricted. Bus companies have been buying new cleaner vehicles or upgrading existing ones with cleaner-emission technology.
Published by: Maslen Estate Agents Limited, 39 Lewes Road, Brighton, East Sussex BN2 3HQ. Tel: 01273 677001 Email: lewesroad@maslen.co.uk Web: www.maslen.co.uk Whilst every care has been taken in compiling this publication Maslen Estate Agents cannot be held responsible for any errors.