Councillor demands Brighton council 'get a grip' on project costs

Bridget Fishleigh, who represents the Brighton and Hove Independents group in Rottingdean Coastal, slammed city council plans to borrow almost £4 million to complete the Black Rock redevelopment.

A document presented to councillors as part of budget proposals outlined plans to borrow £3.9 million to enable the project to be completed, including improving public transport infrastructure for a planned link to the marina and refurbishment and repairs to the reading room and the temple.

“The majority of works were completed in 2022/23, but require the remaining budget to complete during 2023/24,” the document said.

Cllr Bridget Fishleigh called on the council to focus on improving basic services (Image: Brighton and Hove Independents)

• READ MORE: Two new cafes announced for major seafront development

Cllr Fishleigh said the council should be “firmly focused on improving basic services”.

She said: “The council desperately needs to get a grip on all of its building and infrastructure projects.

“The budget document says that borrowing of £3.9 million is required to complete the enabling works at Black Rock.

“The council received a grant of £12.11 million for this work. I appreciate that the costs of labour and materials have risen, however, a rethink is clearly needed.

“The extra entrance point into the marina could have been dropped to save money, and goodness knows how much it cost to cut down and remove the tamarisk plants at Duke’s Mound which have mostly grown back.

“These are unnecessary distractions when councillors and officers should be firmly focused on improving basic services.”

• READ MORE: Motorists face route change during Brighton Marina development (all you need to know)

A council spokesman said that costs had increased due to inflationary pressures, supply chain issues and difficulties in procuring subcontractors but said the project is “too important and too far down the line” to abandon sections of it to save money.

He also said the direct link to the marina will be a “game changer” for the area and extra costs will be “more than paid back” from the long-term value of the site.

The Black Rock redevelopment will transform the seafront site

He said: “Costs have increased since the project started. This is due to the pandemic slowing down the project, as well as inflationary pressures, supply chain issues and difficulties in procuring subcontractors post-Brexit and post-pandemic.

“The project is too important and too far down the line in contractual and delivery terms for us to abandon whole sections of it.

“To help keep costs under control, we’ve redesigned certain elements of the scheme with different engineering solutions, while maintaining the same basic principles for improving the area.

“The extra costs of around £3.9 million we have incurred will be more than paid back in terms of the long-term development value of the site once the project is complete.

The rejuvenation project at Black Rock will also include new public toilets, a temporary pump track and sports court, public artwork and highway upgrades to help promote green travel.