HERITAGE experts say a housebuilder’s second attempt to develop the former site of one of Hove’s finest hotels is even worse than its first.

The Regency Society has labelled Hyde Group’s new proposals for the Sackville Hotel site in Kingsway, Hove, an “uninspiring 1970s slab” and has called on architects to go back to the drawing board.

The conservation body said the proposed building is still too high despite it being halved from the original 17-storey proposal.

A spokesman for the firm said its design team was “reviewing options for the site” ahead of a second public consultation.

Hyde withdrew plans for the original 17-storey tower nicknamed The Sackville Sausage in March in the face of fierce local opposition.

The firm swapped Brighton architect firm Yelo for HGP Architects who released new designs for 64 flats at the site last month.

A second round of public consultation for the plans will be held before a planning application is submitted.

The former 45-bedroom hotel was considered one of Hove’s finest for a century before being demolished in 2006 following a partial collapse during a £5 million, five star refurbishment with the Kingsway site standing vacant ever since.

The Regency Society of Brighton and Hove described the new nine storey building as “disappointingly bland” and out of sympathy with the elegance of its surroundings.

Chairman Roger Hinton said: “The immediate reaction is that it’s uninspiring, Hove deserves far better.

“It’s a 1970s style slab of a building.

“We think that it’s still too high it is projecting above its neighbours and it’s in a conservation area.

“We did object to the previous proposal but at least that had some character to it.

“What they have done is play it very safe in the hope that planners will not object and grant it permission.”

A Hyde spokesman said: “The purpose of the consultation was to obtain feedback on the evolving scheme to inform the ongoing design process.

“We would like to thank all those that have given feedback, and welcome all further comments.

“The design team are currently reviewing options for the site with a view to another round of consultation prior to any planning application being submitted.”