Bid to transform waterfront site

From the The Argus, first published Friday 15th Dec 2006.

A seaside town could be transformed by a multimillion pound redevelopment.

The proposals for the former Parcelforce site on Shoreham seafront include 84 new flats, an 80-room boutique hotel and a health club.

A new waterfront piazza would be built and there would be underground parking, a riverside walk and improvements to the slipways leading to the sea.

Urban Life Developments, the firm behind the proposals, want to know what residents think of the designs before submitting them to Adur District Council in the Spring.

If they get the green light, work would start in July and would be completed within two years.

Managing director Philip Foster said both he and architect Howard Carter had a strong connection with the area.

Mr Foster surfs off Shoreham Beach and socialises in the town, while Mr Carter has just bought a house on the Old Fort Road after falling in love with the area while working on the scheme.

Mr Foster said: "It is a very personal thing for me and I was determined to deliver a scheme that feels right for the area."

He has worked with the Adur Regeneration Initiative to ensure the proposals fit in with the aims of the Shoreham Renaissance Masterplan, which was set out by the district and county councils and others with an interest in the area.

He said the layout of the block of flats was partly inspired by the town's 19th Century fort, which has "maximum viewing points at the same time as maximum privacy".

It is designed so that none of the flats look on to another.

Clive Voice, who manages the boatyard next to the site, said he thought it would improve the area. "At the moment it's very industrial and it's hard to see where the town actually starts. Even though it is quite a modern building, I think even those people who want to keep Shoreham as an old, quaint town will like it."

Brian Pickering of environmental consultancy SM341, which is based in the town, said: "I really like it because they've allowed views of the river and on the other side are views of the Downs. It's not overbearing from the roadside and although it will appear quite high from the river it is set back.

"It will attract people to Shoreham."

The Shoreham Waterfront designs are on show at the Adur Civic Centre in Ham Road, until December 22 and again between January 3 and 5.

Staff from Urban Life will be present to answer questions on January 4 and 5 from 11am to 2pm.

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