A man has described the "unbelievable depth" of pigeon poo inside a shopping centre as "utterly disgusting".
Brian Johnson, 66, said he noticed the droppings at Montague Quarter in Worthing.
Mr Johnson, a Worthing resident, said: "I was walking through the shopping centre and noticed there was about half a centimetre, maybe even a centimetre, of pigeon poo on the floor.
"There are dozens of businesses there paying rent, yet there's half a centimetre of pigeon poo in the thoroughfare where people are walking."
Worthing Borough Council had previously ordered the shopping centre's owners to improve maintenance and address the build-up of bird droppings, threatening to bill them for cleaning services if they failed to act.
Separate sections of the precinct are owned by Cayuga Developments and St. Clair Developments.
The council later agreed to take on a contract to clean the paved areas of the privately owned site.
Mr Johnson said: "It's not just a little patch - it's all over the place. It's particularly bad outside McDonald's and Slicks bar.
"The depth of the stuff is unbelievable.
"It must have accumulated over many months, possibly even years. When you see how deep it is, you know it's been there a long time."
Mr Johnson believes the issue is a health concern.
He said: "There are pre-school children walking around who could fall into it.
"Pigeon poo carries diseases, it's a big health hazard.
"I've never seen pigeon poo this deep in a shopping centre.
"It sounds trivial, but it's not. We're talking about half a centimetre of pigeon poo in a public thoroughfare.
"Surely someone could come along and scrape it off?"
The council says that it sweeps the precinct each week, but that mess can build up in the intervening days.
Mr Johnson continued: "I've noticed it before and thought it was utterly disgusting, but I was shocked to see it again today.
"It's actually got worse. Nothing has been done about it.
"It's not exactly 'Welcome to Worthing', is it?"
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A spokesperson for Worthing Borough Council said: "We’re working with Cayuga Developments and St. Clair Developments to clean up the area for the benefit of residents, visitors and businesses.
"Following a meeting with representatives of both companies, we agreed to clean the precinct’s paved areas on their behalf, at their cost.
"As part of this agreement, we sweep the precinct each week.
"Cleanliness can deteriorate between visits, particularly due to the ongoing issue of birds roosting in Montague Quarter.
"We have made it clear to both companies that the bird roosting needs to be addressed, to significantly reduce the impact of droppings on the cleanliness of the precinct.
"We’re currently waiting for the details of their plan to resolve that issue."
Cayuga Developments and St. Clair Developments have both been contacted for comment.
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