ABOUT US

Beach was formed to try and galvanise public support for an alternative to the Council's proposals for the regeneration of the old bathing pool site in West St Leonards.



We agree with the sentiments expressed in the Local Plan, that what is needed here is “a high quality, com prehensive mixed use development centred on water and beach related commercial tourism and leisure facilities” but we we feel the Council's proposals fall lamentably short in fulfilling this brief.

The strong focus of the Council's proposals is on housing. It wants to build 174 residential units on the site. Our proposals are centred on leisure facilities, and on boosting tourism. We accept there should be some housing, but nothing like the amount the Council wants to build.

What we would have in mind for this unique site we have attempted to visualise on our website, www.beach4.co.uk .

We would like to see:

 

  • A natural bathing pool with a low rise retractable glass cover set in a low maintenance sea garden. The swimming area is separated from the planted area, which biologically filters and cleans the water. This system is widely used in Europe for public swimming pools and has proven success. In winter the pool can be frozen over for ice skating. The facility could thus be used all year round.
  • Well designed seating areas in the sea garden giving an air of tropical splendour.
  • Alongside the pool, an an iconic building incorporating a boat house, shop units, restaurants and wine bars.
  • Facilities for all types of water sports – including sailing boats, kayaks, rowing boats, and wind and kite surfing, with equipment available for hire.
  • A 70 bedroom hotel/spa to the west of the site, with over-night beach huts. The hotel would have a sauna and a gym, and offer a range of health and beauty services, including yoga, pilates, seaweed wrap, and massage.
  • In respect of housing, a low-rise eco retirement village, allowing the elderly to enjoy the surroundings to the full.

We believe funding is available at national and European level for the type of development we are proposing, and that the income generated from the commercial side of the development – the boat house, the shops and restaurants, the hotel and the retirement homes – would be sufficient to meet the running costs of the pool/ice skating rink.

When we saw the first saw the Council's proposals we were so horrified we immediately started a petition objecting to them, and this very quickly attracted over 1600 signatories. If you would like to find out more about our proposals please visit our web site. If you have proposals of your own we would like to hear from you. If you object to the Council's proposals we would invite you to make your objection known to the Council, because we are hoping that the Council will reconsider it's plans, be open to new ideas, and take more of account of what the public wants.