The long-awaited unveiling of a revamped seafront landmark has been delayed by bad weather.

Scaffolding shrouding the Grade II listed Embassy Court in Brighton was due to be taken down this month but gales in January put the £4.5 million renovation project behind schedule.

Replacing hundreds of rotten windows in the 11-storey apartment block also proved more difficult than first anticipated.

Rowena Easton, director of residents' company Bluestorm, said workmen were putting the finishing touches to the seafront and Western Street sides of the Thirties' building.

She said: "We are now looking at mid-March before we start taking the scaffolding down. We lost a few days with the high winds and the windows have proved to be more work than expected.

"Overall we are delighted. When you take into account the work we have started at the rear of the building, we are actually on schedule and on budget, which is unusual for a project of this scale."

Residents won the freehold of the building after years of legal wrangles and set about the refurbishment after raising almost £5 million.

The art deco block had become a notorious eyesore after years of neglect. The renovations have involved replacing the rusty and rotten steel-framed windows and rendering the crumbling concrete facade.

Work began last August and the overall project should be complete by the end of this summer.

Mrs Easton added: "The residents are very pleased we are nearly there with the first phases."