Regeneration meeting 'was just a PR stunt'

The meeting last Wednesday at the conference centre at Butlins was packed with residents who raised concerns and asked questions about the regneration scheme for the town.

But president of the town's chamber of commerce Nick Stuart-Nicholson feels it was merely a PR exercise.

He said: "A few felt afterwards that it was merely a PR exercise, or at best, a staged event in the consultation process.

"In this respect I would agree, as I felt that provision could have been made for more questions, and that sadly, some questions were left unanswered.

"Opinons formed after the meeting included that the regeneration focuses too much on the provision for blocks of flats in the town, and another, more cynical view felt that this could be exploitation, not regeneration."

Concerns were raised by the public about too many flats being built on the site of the Regis Centre, the lack of facilities for young people, and concerns about the image of the town for visitors.

Questions were also asked as to why the owner of the pier could not be involved in the regeneration.

Some residents were positive, praising the board, and urging the rest of the audience to be thankful for the commitment of so many investors.

Mr Stuart-Nicholson added: "These are potentially exciting times and, although challenges and differences of opinion are inevitable, it is far more realistic to acknowledge the positive value that can be brought to our town, particularly as St Modwen are still with us despite the rather obvious economic down-turn.

"Bognor Regis is long overdue for revitalising and we currently lack identity."

West Sussex County councillor for Bognor Regis east Francis Oppler felt the scheme needed more community involvement.

He said: "If these projects do not have community involvement they will fail, and fail badly.

"We have an excellent library which has plenty of room for it to expand. All we need to do, to access the first floor, is to put in a lift.

"People are horror-struck at the idea of having a 30-storey tower block.

"I have seen at first hand the solid determination of Arun District Council who want to see these proposals and make them a reality."

West Sussex County Council director of operations Richard Perry said there were no concrete plans for the library, and any talk of it moving was purely a suggestion.

He said: "We are talking about any opportunity we have to improve the library facility as part of this regeneration. Any other option will have to be demonstorably better than the existing facility."

Bognor Regis Regeneration Task Force coordinator Richard McMann said he was pleased with the turnout at the meeting. He said: "We felt people went away knowing more than they did when they came in. We felt they were genuinely pleased and impressed and surprised at the presentation.

"If we are going to get it right, we have to keep an eye on what is going on in the economic climate rather than keep our heads in the sand.

"This is not just about Bognor, we are just caught up in it."

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