Campaigners have criticised as “misleading” a leaflet delivered to hundreds of homes by a property developer.
Urban Splash has delivered the eight-page documents setting out its plans for the development of Anston House, dubbed the ugliest building in Brighton.
The booklet contains a pre-paid form which asks residents to tick a box registering their support for the plans. The developer wants to tear down the Preston Road block to make way for homes and offices up to 15 storeys high.
Brighton and Hove City Council pulled the application from the agenda of its planning meeting this month and asked Urban Splash to resubmit information on the length of the shadow that the building will cast across Preston Park.
The leaflet, seen by The Argus, makes no mention of the shadowing effect of the building.
Selma Montford, the honorary secretary of the Brighton Society, said: “It’s an absolute scandal. This leaflet is misleading.
“Our report showed that the shadow cast by the new building will be up to 50% longer than the developer claimed, but this booklet is asking people to support the scheme without mentioning this.”
A spokesman for Urban Splash said: “We are promoting the regeneration of Anston House, which has been derelict for more than 20 years and is widely recognised to be a key regeneration site in Brighton.
Residents' opinions
“Our scheme will bring 231 new homes, support 165 jobs through new workspace and provide £960,000 direct funding into local community facilities, schools and Preston Park.
“Before we submitted the planning application, we undertook extensive engagement with the local community, and incorporated residents’ opinions into our plans.
“We are proud of the proposals and had some very positive feedback from the pre-planning consultation we ran in April 2012.
“Our latest leaflets, issued last week, provided some background on the project to engage further with the local community and remind them of our plans.”
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