Huw Oxburgh, BBC-funded Local Democrary Reporter
Rebecca Maer, Eastbourne Reporter
Controversial proposals to build a six-storey retirement living complex in Eastbourne on the waterfront have been approved by councillors.
Eastbourne Borough Council’s planning committee last night granted permission to build 126 “apartments for older people” on land to the east of Martinique Way in Sovereign Harbour.
Alternative versions of the scheme had been considered by the committee twice before in the past six months. Councillors deferred previous decisions due to concerns about its size and impact on the surrounding area, near a historic Martello Tower.
Developer Untold Living submitted revised plans following each deferral, reducing the size of the proposed scheme each time.
How did the plans change?
Initial plans, considered in March, had been for 137 apartments, with the first revision reducing the number of units to 128.
The reduced number of apartments from 128 to 126 in the latest version of the plans came with a reduction in the massing of one of the three blocks and an increase in off-street parking spaces from 70 to 75.
While the latest revisions were considered acceptable by the committee, objectors remained concerned about the scale of the building.
Speaking at the hearing, Frances Lawrence, above, chairwoman of the Sovereign Harbour Residents Association, argued the changes did not go far enough to address residents’ concerns.
She said: “At the last meeting the instruction was clear; you asked for a reduction in the scale of the building and a reduction in the number of units.
“Untold Living came back with a reduction of two … and have done nothing significant to amend the scale of the buildings. They are the same height and density and it is an affront to the councillors who made it clear what was required.
“Looking at the bigger picture, we see yet another retirement complex being proposed that simply doesn’t serve the needs of the town. The purchase costs and extremely high service and care package costs will effectively lock out local retirees.”
Similar concerns were raised by ward councillor Kshama Shore (Cons), who argued the overall scheme should be made up of no more than 85 apartments.
The Sovereign Harbour Residents Association (SHRA) wanted to see a maximum of five storeys in the tallest of the three blocks, which was the size put forward by a previous developer in 2016 for 67 large apartments.
Ms Lawrence told the Eastbourne Reporter their main objections remained that it was overdevelopment of the site due to the scale and that it was the wrong type of housing.
She said: “We are a little bit miffed that the planners didn’t tell the developers what would be acceptable. It was only the councillors who said ‘no’ last time.
“One of our main objections was that we wanted housing for a wider cross-section of Eastbourne residents, not retirement flats.”
What happens next?
Ultimately, however, committee members felt the latest revisions were acceptable and granted planning permission.
The committee’s decision depends on officers carrying out further consultation with East Sussex County Council on landscape and ecology matters. This consultation could result in further conditions, the committee heard.
Planning permission was also made contingent on the developer signing a legal agreement with the council, which would secure a local labour agreement and financial contributions towards local transport.
The legal agreement would also limit occupancy of the apartments to those over 55 and prevent the apartments being used as second homes.
:: For further information on the proposals see application reference 230847 on the Eastbourne Borough Council website.
