Purchase order on Hastings pier (From The Argus)

Purchase order on Hastings pier

5:00pm Wednesday 14th July 2010 in News By Neil Vowles

An abandoned pier could be brought back to life after councillors agreed to begin proceedings to take it over.

Hastings Borough Council has agreed to pursue a compulsory purchase order for the town’s Victorian pier.

If successful the council would then hand over the keys to Hastings Pier and White Rock Trust, which would begin looking for funding for structural repairs and refurbishment.

Officials believe taking possession of the pier would not cost the local authority anything other than its legal costs because of the condition the structure has been left in.

The trust has been campaigning for four years to develop and preserve the pier and says it wants a community-owned 21st century plan which would attract visitors around the year.

The Grade II listed pier, designed by Victorian engineer Eugenius Birch and opened in 1872, has been closed to the public since November 2008.

Restoration of the pier is expected to cost the trust more than £13 million although £5 million could be met through revenue raised by the pier itself.

The pier is currently owned by Ravenclaw Investments based in Panama.

In 2006 the company ignored a legal notice served by the council to perform a survey of the pier structure.

An independent inspection commissioned by the council showed the pier was in danger of collapse.

The compulsory purchase order process is likely to take months and the council has set aside £200,000 for legal costs.

Hastings Pier and White Rock Trustee Chris Dodwell said: “This is good news not just for the pier but for the economic regeneration of the whole of Hastings.”

Hastings Borough Council leader Jeremy Birch said: “It’s great news something is going to happen. It’s a risk but the alternative would be to watch the pier gradually sink into the sea.”

Interest was expressed in buying the pier in 2008 by Grand Pier Ltd, owners of Weston-Super-Mare’s main pier.

Its interest cooled after its own report estimated it would cost £50 million to repair and restore the pier into a viable visitor attraction.