Grassroots regeneration for Bohemia
The Bohemia Creative Quarter is, according to Kate Rosie, owner of landmark St Leonards emporium Teddy Tinkers, “a wonderful community of people with over 80 different businesses and shops.”
Within an area loosely delineated by Bohemia Road and London Road, owners of a diverse range of local enterprises have banded together to create ‘First Sundays’ with monthly events taking place around local streets. The first will be on 7 August. Details were still being finalised as HIP went to press, but a performance stage, market stalls and the appearance of a former Coronation Street star are possibilities.
Ray Manning of nearby coffee shop Sugarpie Honeybuns sees the initiative as an attempt to shift people’s attention from the St Leonards coastal strip to a less well known but equally interesting part of town. “We’re a loose collective of local individuals and businesses trying enhance the profile of the area and improve its facilities. We all live and work locally, many are commercial enterprises who want to make money, but also to create a sense of community. It’s a beautiful area with a sense of history but doesn’t enjoy the same attention as southern parts of St Leonards – some people don’t know this end exists.”
Although there’s no obvious no focal point, Manning points to a plethora of grassroots enterprises: retail shops, art and music studios, Black Butterfly cultural and community hub, a theatre, public garden and even a lawn tennis club. He’s aware of the possible pitfalls of regeneration: “Some people have lived here for generations, we don’t want to see them cut out. But the new businesses provide employment opportunities, training and flexible career development, a valuable contact network”.
The group hope to obtain grant funding, possibly from local supermarkets, and plan to attend a Hastings Borough Council meeting in August to make their case. “We need to get something concrete to encourage community participation,” says Manning. “We hope First Sunday events become a regular feature to foster a sense of community and local pride.”
The initiative is supported by Amanda Jobson, Green Party councillor for Gensing Ward. The town north of White Rock is recognised as an area of deprivation and was previously the subject of council plans and feasibility studies reported extensively In HIP.
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