The letter from Elizabeth Dowse of No-ID (Letters, December 2) was timely.

All those councillors who rejected the original planning application for 52 Palmeira Avenue on the grounds it was not modern enough should go and have a look at what we have in its place - a concrete monstrosity that is totally inappropriate and much too big for its site.

It would be foolish to pretend redevelopment is not going to take place. The large family houses and gardens which have graced Hove present a developer's dream.

The importance of the gardens, which are also being destroyed, as a haven for wildlife should not be overlooked.

Apart from a token bit of turf and a few shrubs, the new developments are grabbing every square inch of ground to the detriment of the environment.

The governmental pressure for more homes, plus the financial inducements offered to householders in the area, can only result in more and more of these properties being replaced by money-making blocks of flats.

The bigger threat is that this council has absolutely no idea what "appropriate" means and we can see the results of this ignorant policy all over Hove - with much more (and worse) to come.

It is about time our councillors and planning officers remembered who pays their wages, started listening to residents and stopped using Hove as an outlet for these pretentious and hideous designs.

-Mrs Pauline Robertson, secretary, Goldsmid Residents' Environmental Group, Cromwell Court, Cromwell Road, Hove