Inappropriate Development
FIONA MCGARRY went along to the Protestival in West St Leonards to see whether a new form of protest combined with a community festival could have any hope of changing the council’s mind about the housing and leisure development planned for the site
Crowd at speakers corner
Some 250 people came along to the Old Bathing Pool site in St Leonards … a mixture of local residents, concerned members of the community and curious visitors. The afternoon had a celebratory atmosphere with music from Simon and the Pope, Hastings Punk Choir and a twirling display team: the Tornados Twirl-stars.
The event was billed as “An afternoon for families, friends and communities coming together to protect our town from inappropriate development.” 3,000 local residents have petitioned against the plans of developers West Marina St Leonards Limited (WMSLL). The part of the site demarcated by the developers for community activities and events was cordoned off to show how small this proposed area is.
The ’protest’ element of the day kicked off with a symbolic tug of war between two teams: ‘local residents’ versus ‘developers’ wearing ‘fat cat’ masks: reassuringly, the local residents’ team won.
This was followed by short talks from a range of community group speakers throughout the afternoon, including Jane Ripley of Standing Up for Nature Hastings and Rother; Richard Watson of Energise Sussex Coast; various housing groups, including Ethan Oshoko from ACORN Hastings; Dawn Dublin from Black Butterfly; disability rights campaigner, Sophie Khan and local builder, Chris Dodwell.
In the words of one of the organisers Lucie Mason, founder of SOBS (Save our bathing pool site), the space “belongs to all of us,” and it should be “protected for future generations”. There was a general sense that it was time for community groups to work together and galvanise residents of the town to stand up for this iconic open space and save it from corporate development.
As previously reported in HIP, West Marina St Leonards Limited (WMSLL) has been granted a 250-year lease of the site by Hastings Borough Council (HBC). Neither party has disclosed any of the terms of that lease, but in April and May this year the company publicly exhibited draft designs showing an intention to build up to 151 new homes there. A petition signed by over 3,000 residents has called for the area to be retained as a community and leisure space. Community groups had previously drawn up their own plans for a mixed development on the site with far greater public access.
Tug of war between communities and developers
Anna Sabin, a member of the West St Leonards Neighbourhood Forum which has been working with local residents to create a Neighbourhood Plan for HBC, points out the council have said that what they want from the development of the Old Bathing Pool Site is “a viable and attractive proposition to transform the West Marina into a destination point in line with the objectives of the seafront strategy, provide enhanced leisure opportunities and see much-needed investment in the area.” Campaigners believe that the current proposals fall far short of that aspiration. Ms Sabin said “It’s no good having a plan if no attempt is made to stick to it.” The tug-of-war battle between community and developers is likely to continue for months to come.
We hope you have enjoyed reading this article. The future of our volunteer led, non-profit publication would be far more secure with the aid of a small donation. You can also support local journalism by becoming a friend of HIP. It only takes a minute and we would be very grateful.
Leave a Reply