Plans to open a nightclub called Smack on Sussex’s most violent street are being opposed by police.

The venue, opening on the site of Pasha in West Street, Brighton, has applied for a new drinking licence, which is being opposed by Sussex Police, Brighton and Hove City Council and neighbours. 

But a spokesman for the club said it would be aimed at a classy clientele.

In 2011 West Street was named the 32nd worst in the country for crimes. Sussex Police said almost 2,000 violent offences, ranging from carrying a weapon to assault, were recorded overnight – between 8pm and 6am each day – in 2010.

The road is part of the council’s Cumulative Impact Area, which limits the number of licenced premises.

At a licensing meeting of the council on Friday, the club is seeking approval to change its name to Smack and add a new bar.

A spokesman for Smack, which would cater for 380 revellers, said it would not be like Pasha, which shut in April, although the owner of the freehold would remain the same.

He said £700,000 had been spent improving it and the leaseholders had changed.

It is now run by Rowbell Ltd, which also manages The Camelford Arms in Camelford Street, Brighton, and The Paris House in Western Road, Hove.

Admitting there had been problems associated with Pasha, he said: “Smack will be the antithesis of what Pasha was like. It will have a higher class of clientele.

“We have spent a lot of money insulating the building so noise does not escape and we do not want ‘pinch points’ – areas which are very busy.”

Referring to the name Smack, he said it would not be placed outside, but would mainly be for marketing online.

He said: “It absolutely has nothing to do with drugs or violence. It is linked to the feel of the club – a 1980s New York coffee party.”

Yesterday, both Sussex Police and Brighton and Hove City Council’s ward councillors Jason and Ania Kitcat declined to comment on the proposals.

Letters sent by the council and police to the licensing committee opposing the plans are being kept secret.

The council says the documents contain “information which is likely to reveal the identity of an individual”.