For more than a decade the Brighton Centre has been past its shelf life.

Simon Fanshawe (The Argus, February 3) encourages us to be patient and prudent in view of the proposed redevelopment negotiations for the new venue as he valiantly rattles the council's funding tin and relays the council's age-old mantra, "No money! No money!"

However, the mighty £50 million shortfall figure (from £300 million), as mentioned by Simon, is astonishing and surely represents a nibble too far of the pending corporate pie.

If things are really that tight, perhaps the contemporary option would be to call a friend and even charter a new pie.

More seriously, Brighton and Hove urgently needs to be ready for the Olympics in 2012 or else be left behind.

This is not a doomsday prediction - it is a sobering view of corporate assessment.

Simon surely agrees that we need to be ready for 2012. A frontrunner should be a new Brighton Centre reflecting adept corporate enterprise and the established fine heritage of the city.

Nothing short of international status is required in order to size up to those competitors who are already advanced with their cities' developments.

It is well past the time to get moving. Simon, the race is on.

Patricia Ginman,
Varndean Road, Brighton