I am on the side of Selma Montford, secretary of the Brighton Society, against the cheap gibes of Simon Fanshawe (Letters, February 20).
Mrs Montford has, for 30-odd years, been a passionate and expert advocate for preserving the best of the city's rich heritage of buildings.
Through her stewardship of conservation bodies and her marvellous chairmanship of various committees, she has given the lead to people like me, who, while being no technical experts, sense when a building is inappropriate or out of character with its surroundings.
We need, rightly, to encourage investors to engage with the needs of the city but not at the expense of our long-term wellbeing.
Among developers there are always the spin-men and the conartists who will knock up anything for a quick profit. We need people like Selma Montford to help us stay on our guard against those who would turn our townscape into a forest of cheapjack towers.
-Philip Smith, Brighton
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