During the public inquiry into the future of the Warnes Hotel site, there was consternation in some quarters when the phrase art deco was used.

Protesters fighting plans for a block of retro-art deco apartments in this prime seafront location overlooking Steyne Gardens warned: "They won't fit in."

The inspector said he had received a number of letters from residents who said the town was not known for its classic Thirties-style architecture.

But the people who put pen to paper in a bid to scupper the scheme tabled by Roffey Builders were not only misinformed - they were wrong.

There are art deco buildings scattered all over the town and they have stood the test of time remarkably well.

In fact, many of them now enjoy listed status, protected by government decree from unsympathetic development.

Probably the most outstanding art deco building is the town hall in Chapel Road, which was officially unveiled by Prince George in May 1933.

Following the demolition of two historic homes, Tudor Lodge and Fairlawn, work started on the town hall on October 1, 1931, and finished on March 31, 1933, exactly on schedule.

Ten thousand people assembled outside for the opening ceremony, attended by the architect, Mr C Cowles-Voysey, who was met by a guard-of-honour formed by 228th Battery Royal Artillery.

At the time, critics described the building as "simple and severe", but by today's standards it is an architectural gem.

Builders used Ancaster stone, Australian walnut, and Indian silver greywood to fashion the attractive, opulent interior of the town's municipal headquarters.

The Ancaster stone, in which the names of past mayors are carved, is cool and smooth to the touch, and illuminated by star lights, perfectly reflecting the period.

The railings have a curved, flowing symmetry, creating an ambience which is stylish without being flamboyant.

As the nation slowly emerged from the grip of recession, it was a superb reflection of civic pride, a commodity now in very short supply.

Today, the decor remains just as fresh, clean and airy as it was a lifetime ago, when attention to detail took precedence over the petty pennypinching which plagues public life in the 21st Century.

The focal point is a mosaic of the borough crest inlaid in the floor, surrounded by a circle of pale pink and grey shell and crab motifs set into the stone.

The debating chamber boasts a handmade carpet featuring exquisite woven designs reflecting Worthing's maritime heritage.

The committee rooms resemble the boardrooms of top companies, and even the lampshades have survived 70-odd years of continual use.

It is a far cry from Portland House, the council's overspill office complex in Richmond Road, which was built about a decade ago and has all the architectural flair of a Belfast Army barracks.

Looking at Portland House, the magistrates court and the library, nobody can doubt that standards of design have taken a nosedive.

But those who despair at the drudgery can take comfort from the Southern Pavilion of the pier, which has all the beguiling lines of an oceangoing liner.

The same applies to Worthing Rowing Club at Splash Point, Stoke Abbott Court in Stoke Abbott Road, Onslow Court in Brighton Road and the Beach Hotel in Marine Parade.

While the Connaught Theatre in Union Place is Edwardian in origin, the facade is most definitely art deco.

Less obvious, but just as appealing, are the shops and offices forming the northwest corner of the junction between Goring Road and George V Avenue.

In Cambridge Road, tucked behind a row of terraced houses, is a splendid art deco residence with the date 1932 confidently stamped on the facade.

There is also a fine flat-roofed example of a family home, circa 1935, just south of the Alexandra pub, in Selden Road, off Lyndhurst Road.

And who can forget another classic of the era, the Odeon cinema, which was bulldozed without shame to make way for the Montague Centre shopping precinct?

So a new Warnes built to the scale of Steyne Gardens in an art deco style wouldn't look out of place.

In fact, it would probably become an architectural asset, outlasting by decades the derisory designs which have blighted Worthing since the late Fifties.