There's a site in Brighton that has been derelict for so long no one can remember exactly what happened to it.

Some say Jubilee Street was bombed in the war and others believe it was a victim of slum clearance in the early Fifties.

Whatever the truth, the greatest disaster that ever befell it was the wanton destruction of the Regency Gothic Central Free School at the Church Street end of the site 30 years ago.

This left an ugly gap which has remained ever since.

On Friday next week, plans will be shown at the Pavilion Theatre in New Road for replacement buildings, including a central library, at Jubilee Street and they had better be good.

The last scheme by East Sussex County Council was a disaster and disappeared from view when the then Environment Secretary John Gummer (remember him) correctly called them in for a public inquiry.

For a town which became home to a host of wonderful buildings during the 19th Century, Brighton has not fared well since the war.

Look at Kingswest, the Brighton Centre, the Thistle Hotel and the Prince Regent Hotel and you are looking at bland, boring design, wasted opportunities and a lack of feeling for the resort.

There is also an enormous and not to be repeated opportunity to link up the cultural quarter of the town around the newly-refurbished Dome and Theatre Royal with the bustling, souk-like North Laine area.

This could be achieved through the construction of a diverting walkway south to north through the site.

It will be crucially important to get the design of the library right so that it is a good neighbour both of the Grade I listed Dome and the more domestic architecture of North Laine.

It will have to be a modern building, original, eccentric, arresting but not stark. It must be welcoming and open.

Just as important as the external design is the content. Libraries have come a long way since the days of Andrew Carnegie but you would not necessarily know that in Brighton and Hove.

The old central library in Church Street was cramped while its opposite number in Church Road, Hove, has a real feel of Carnegie charity about it.

The temporary library at Vantage Point is remarkably unattractive and the sooner a replacement is built the better.

Library use has been dropping and small wonder. While most people have been steadily growing more prosperous with greater disposable incomes and attractive homes, many libraries have remained dowdy, drab and dismal.

Why borrow an elderly dog-eared book when you can wander into somewhere such as Sussex Stationers and pick up new books, cut price and classics for as little as 49p?

This library also needs to take account of the electronic revolution. It should be full of computers giving access to the internet. It should be able to provide instant knowledge and information for the thousands of all ages who want it.

There should be a cafe, perhaps even a restaurant, to provide a focal point for customers.

Its basic services should remain free but it should not be afraid of charging for commercial services and operating a good bookshop to raise money for its amenities.

Many people like me do not use libraries much any more because they have fallen so badly behind the times. Here's a chance for Brighton to catch up and lead the way into the 21st Century.

The money is there and I hope the imagination is too.