A FORECAST into the city’s future has revealed a high-growth creative economy and a world-class visitor destination.

Brighton and Hove will enjoy visitor numbers nearing 10 million thanks to its year-round programme of events, following the successful Rugby World Cup 2015 and retention of Premier League football status.

But a soaring demand for a lack of housing supply will continue to be a major issue in 2024.

The predictions were made by head of regeneration Nick Hibberd in an annual report by the director of public health at Brighton and Hove City Council.

The creative tech cluster will be the fastest growing sector, with new businesses combining creative, digital and information technology skills in ‘superfused’ companies.

Two new sectors will emerge – life and medical sciences and environmental technologies.

New business will form off the back of an amalgamation of hospital trusts and the University of Sussex’s bio-innovation facility.

Meanwhile the Rampion wind farm will stimulate environmental industries at Newhaven University Technical College and Shoreham Harbour.

The city’s two universities will act as anchor businesses, extending their presences, commercialising technologies, supporting graduate start-ups and working on business research and development.

Traditional retailers will survive by launching an online ‘virtual Laines’ amid a shift to internet shopping.

Projects such as Valley Gardens and Circus Street will connect and make the city more appealing with shared space for motorists, cyclists and pedestrians. The i360 will provide views of the South Downs National Park and boost visitor numbers by 700,000.

But one problem that will not go away is housing and a lack of development space - meaning demand remains very high.

An influx of young professionals and commuters will bolster the population of Brighton and Hove to 289,000, pushing the rental and buying market well above the national average.

The flagship Toads Hole Valley Eco Village will be nearing completion, with community involvement and sustainable building now a must.

But in an ominous prediction of things to come Tony Mernagh, executive director of the city’s economic partnership, warned housing could be the determining factor in the city’s success.

He said the cycle of boom and bust in London would bring people south for a better life, driving up prices further in Brighton and Hove.

City workers would be forced to commute longer distances, with increasing numbers coming from Eastbourne or Worthing, neither of which offer quick rush hour transport.

Mr Mernagh said: “Commuter fatigue will see clever young entrepreneurs establish their own companies where they live, and growing companies will be attracted to relocate to locations where there is a ready young workforce, where office accommodation doesn’t carry a ‘trendy Brighton’ premium and where housing doesn’t cost 40% more than the UK average.

“Every empire in history has had its fatal flaw that eventually leads to its collapse.

“A dire inability to accommodate the predicted need of an extra 20,000 homes over the next twenty years could be Brighton’s fault line.”