I met Lord Parkinson in Westminster this week. He has the ministerial portfolio for Heritage. We spoke about Towner’s Centenary to come, and I very much hope he will come to Eastbourne to see for himself the wonderful heritage and culture scene which has won us our ‘The place to visit’ in 2023 accolade. What a brilliant springboard this should be for our visitor economy and the fortunes of our cash-strapped council now paying £2 million+ and rising in debt interest per annum.
But what I really wanted to talk to him about was our much loved, but completely silent and shrouded Bandstand and how it can be rescued. Lord Parkinson is looking at any and every funding stream to help bail out the council so we can get this attraction back into use. Hopefully the government can still come to the council’s rescue again.
This week also brought some valuable insight from the levelling up department on the council’s failed bid. It was considered a relatively strong bid – what could be more compelling than our beautiful seafront? But, importantly, feedback signposted how it could be further strengthened. Going forward, demonstrating closer partnership with the county council and wider region and more engagement with the community will be one of the keys to success.
Community engagement has been in the frame this week with Fisherman’s Green. I’m delighted it’s been protected. I hope the importance of the Local Plan will capture public interest in a whole new way now. It will be a blueprint for Eastbourne’s future development. It needs to deliver the right homes in the right places, protect green spaces, create a flourishing business environment and develop job opportunities. No more talk of mandatory government targets, because there aren’t any. What is needed now is for the council to publish its own housing numbers. I have urged them to do so.
Changes I fought for in the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill on planning will increase local influence but it is important the council uses all its existing powers. Not having put protections in place against the proliferation of HMOs is one such example.
There’s a great deal of work ahead but an exciting future for Eastbourne to strike out for too!
