Board ‘celebrates’ submission of its plan with new website outlining its aims
‘Town Deal Board celebrates submission!’ a press release from Hastings Borough Council (HBC) proudly trumpeted yesterday as the local bid for £28.2m of government funds was sent off.
And a new website https://www.hastingstowndeal.co.uk/ has been launched to sketch out the objectives of the bid of the Town Investment Plan..
Key objectives include
- 614 new jobs
- 875,000 additional visitors every year
- 203 new homes
- 17,700 square meters of new and refurbished commercial space
- 15,000m² of new or upgraded leisure, arts, cultural, heritage buildings and landmarks
- 1,670m² of new or upgraded green skills and learning facilities
If approved, the plan would see £28.2m of Town Deal money injected into Hastings and St Leonards over the next six years which members of the Town Deal Board expect would generate a further £85m of private sector over the same period.
Talking about the submission of their plan Carole Dixon and Graham Peters, Co-chairs of the Town Deal board, said: “We are seeking investment through the plan for projects which offer an exciting future for the town. These come from the hundreds of thoughts, ideas and comments from residents, businesses and organisations in the town who are as passionate about the town as we, the board and the council are.”
While no details of specific projects are being released yet the pair say the submission includes: “A real mix of projects from exciting new skills provision, to housing, to Hastings Castle, to new facilities and biodiversity in the town centre and factory and flexible co-working spaces. Many of these projects are still at concept stage so there will be lots of opportunity for communities to help shape, influence and have their say on the detail over the coming year and beyond.”
The submission of the Town Investment Plan is the first major step of the six year programme for Hastings Town Deal and is an expression of interest which the board have unanimously recommended for investment. If approved by government, the individual projects will need to develop detailed business cases over the next year for final approval before beginning construction.
Councillor Kim Forward, leader of Hastings Borough Council says: “HBC is delighted to see the submission of the Town Investment Plan, it has been a huge undertaking by not only the Town Deal board but also the project team and project leads to get to this point. This is a fantastic opportunity for the town to re-set its ambitions for regeneration and offers an exciting future with benefits for all those who live, work and visit.”
A series of social media accounts have also been launched these include:
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HastingsDeal
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/Hastingsdeal
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hastingstowndeal/
- #MakeItInHastings
- There’s a blog at: www.hastingstowndeal.co.uk
- LinkedIn page to follow shortly.
While we don’t know details of individual projects that have been submitted the ambitious Science-on-Sea project centred around the abandoned St Leonards Parish Church was rejected as was a West Marina Revival scheme that would have seen, among other things, the redevelopment of the old bathing pool site without housing.
Read more here…
Find out who the members of the Town Deal Board are by clicking the link below:
https://www.hastings.gov.uk/regeneration/towndeal/board/biographies/
All good stuff I’m sure. Can the council also make a commitment to look after what we’ve got already. You only have to look at the weeds, graffiti, terrible pavements, untended green spaces etc etc. to know that it can’t do the basics let alone undertake major new projects.
What ever happened to the pointless mist feature on the front?
I’m pleased the Town Board are tackling serious priorities such as skills and opportunities, jobs, and homes for people, especially young people. Whilst the lido would be lovely. How would the projects that didn’t get through have helped to address some of the serious issues the town faces? Are the proposals available publicly for review? Genuinely interested because you seem to skim over the big positives that Plumpton College is investing in the town. I think this part of the deal and Ambition to tackle climate change is great Upskilling in green technology to become a centre of excellence. Also, the town centre is pretty dismal – high streets are dying around the country and the guidance from the government was to focus on the town centre or gateways and show direct benefit. People want to live in town centres near to services, and with so many vacant retail buildings, repurposing them for new uses makes good sense. That’s not to say that West St Leonard’s doesn’t deserve some investment – of course it does and needs investment, but it’s just stating the facts based on the FAQs.. How many jobs and skills would the church and lido projects create, and what would be the ongoing maintenance costs be to keep assets in good shape? Just asking a question? What would have been the number of new jobs created? How would it have helped those people most in need?