https://www.hastingsindependentpress.co.uk/articles/news/pier-for-sale-again/ The Hastings & St Leonards non-profit community newspaper Sun, 26 Oct 2025 13:03:11 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.1.2 https://www.hastingsindependentpress.co.uk/articles/news/pier-for-sale-again/#comment-44353 Sun, 26 Oct 2025 13:03:11 +0000 https://www.hastingsindependentpress.co.uk/?p=32740#comment-44353 A major issue facing any group wanting to take over the pier , is how to create enough income to run the pier. On top of management, insurance and security overheads, the structure requires constant maintenance and repair. At its restoration, the only proposed sources of income were a cafe amd outdoor events. Both, considering our climate and seasonal trade, very unrealiable.
Unfortunately, it seems no one looked at how the Victorians/Edwardians built and ran successful piers. The pier might have won an architectural prize, but didn’t deserve prizes for business sense.
Whoever is allowed to take over this precious public asset must provide a plan of how they expect to make it financially viable, long term. Or else we continue the cycle of collecting money from the well meaning public in the form of private donations and publc grants, and then sinking into administation and disillusion

]]>