Friday, November 18, 2016
Scheme is ‘key to delivering new homes and jobs’ in city Bex Bastable
bex.bastable@jpress.co.cuk @BexBastable
There are high hopes for U+I’s regeneration of Preston Barracks and the University of Brighton’s Moulsecoomb campus. Cllr Warren Morgan, the leader of Brighton and Hove City Council, said: “This major development is key to delivering new homes and jobs for Brighton and Hove, to reducing the student pressure on housing and to driving economic growth which benefits the whole city.” After revealing the revised plans for the site today (Friday), the developer said it hopes to submit a final plan to the council in the next few months. The three sites set to be redeveloped are: the University of Brighton’s Watts car park, the Mithras car
park sites on either side of the LewesRoadandneighbouring Preston Barracks. The scheme includes 376 new homes, more than 1,300 student bedrooms, a 50,000 square foot hub for startup businesses, a new home for the university’s Business School and new teaching and learning facilities. Debra Humphris, vice chancellor of University of Brighton, said: “The new campus will deliver significant benefits for our students, staff and local residents by creating a great place to live, work and learn. And by delivering over 1,300 additional student bedrooms, at the same time as holding our student numbers at their current numbers, we will take pressure off local private housing.” There are also plans for a new pedestrian bridge across Lewes Road, linking all three sites, as well as new
News IN BRIEF
Three-month road closure Dukes Mound – the road connecting the A259 with Madeira Drive near the Marina – is to close for three months for structural repairs to the wall which supports the seafront road. It will close on Monday (November 21) and is scheduled to reopen in February next year. The downhill side of Dukes Mound will reopen at weekends after consultation with traders, and the road will also be opened over the Christmas period – between December 20 and January 4.
Another week, another strike
Proposed pedestrian bridge over Lewes Road connecting all three sites
public squares, and crossings to provide connections to Moulsecoomb station and local bus stops. Also included in the plans are 1,000 cycle
parking spaces, cycle docks to support the city’s new ‘Boris Bikes’ scheme, and a 1km running and fitness route around the site.
An exhibition of the revised plan will be at FIELD, Preston Barracks, today (Friday) from 12pm to 8pm, and tomorrow (Saturday) from 10am to 2pm.
Members of the RMT union are set to go on strike again next week in the longrunning dispute with Govia Thameslink over conductors on Southern trains. The latest strike will take place on Tuesday (November 22) and Wednesday (November 23). For updates on services throughout the strike, visit: www.southernrailway.com
A lantern for a lost loved one at this year’s Burning the Clocks A Brighton-based funeral directors will create and sponsor 25 ‘in memory’ lanterns at Burning the Clocks, for those mourning a loved one who has died in the last 12 months. The Burning the Clocks parade runs from New Road to the seafront on the evening of December 21, with around 2,000 participants and more than 20,000 onlookers. Cara Mair, owner and founder of ARKA Original Funerals announced the firm would sponsor 25 lanterns for the winter solstice celebration in the city, which is organised by charity Same Sky.
Lanterns at the annual Burning the Clocks event in Brighton
Each sponsorship package, worth £100, includes the lantern, two places at the parade and the after party, plus a reading of the lost relatives name at the bonfire
on the beach. Burning the Clocks is funded through donations, and is running a crowdfunding campaign which has already raised £5,100. If you wish to take part in the Burning the Clocks parade with a commemorative lantern for a loved one then write to ARKA Original Funerals, 136 Islingword Road, Brighton, B2N 9SH. The first 25 will be invited to join the parade on December 21. To find out more about Burning the Clocks, visit: www.crowdfunder.co.uk/ burning-the-clocks
Railway restoration at seafront A much-loved seafront attraction has ‘disappeared’ for the winter but will be back bigger and better next year, according to the council, writes Sarah George. Volk’s Railway has closed for restoration and will remain shut to the public until next spring. Residents were worried the railway might be closing for good, with one member of the 14,000-person Facebook group Brighton
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BRIGHTON AND HOVE INDEPENDENT
People posting: “Where has the Brighton Volk’s Railway Station gone?” But a Brighton and Hove City Council spokesperson was quick to reassure residents it recently secured £1.65m from the Heritage Lottery fund to be spent on the Volk’s restoration. Councillor Alan Robins, deputy chairman of the city’s economic development and culture committee, said: “The Volk’s Railway is a
much-loved and integral part of our city’s history. “We will put the funds to good use to maintain and improve the railway, creating an even better experience for future passengers while staying true to Volk’s vision.” The funding will go towards a new heritage visitor centre for the famous Victorian attraction and workshop at the aquarium site, as well as the restoration of three original carriages.
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