Purchase order started on Hastings Pier
The future of Hastings Pier looks bright after the council voted unanimously to start proceedings to compulsory purchase the once thriving attraction.
Faced with a 3,000 name strong petition presented by the Observer, councillors decided to officially back plans to force current owners Ravenclaw Investments to sell up.
And once the compulsory purchase is completed, ownership of the ageing structure will be handed over to members of the Hastings Pier and White Rock Trust – just as our Save Our Pier campaign urged.
A report commissioned by the trust earlier this month revealed that the front two sections of the pier could be restored and brought back into use for around 8million.
But the trust said it was unable to begin attracting funding until the council began CPO proceedings.
This week the local authority agreed to do just that, meaning the trust can now set about securing the grants needed to return the pier to its former glories.
A delighted Chris Dodwell, spokesman for the trust, thanked the Observer for its campaign and said the group could not wait to get cracking.
"This is good news not just for the pier but for the economic regeneration of the whole of Hastings," he said.
"Our message to funders is that Hastings Pier is not only a valuable historical icon but is an asset from which everyone will benefit and will create a large number of permanent jobs.
"It is the key to the future development of tourism along the whole seafront."
It is not yet known how long the CPO process will take, particularly bearing in mind Ravenclaw is an off-shore company based in Panama which has traditionally been hard to contact.
However, councillors were confident things were now moving in the right direction.
Speaking at Monday's meeting at which the local authority has earmarked 200,000 to meet the legal costs of the CPO, Cllr Peter Chowney said: "This is a significant day in the life of Hastings Pier.
"This is probably our last chance to save it. Things could go wrong but we have to put our faith in this scheme. It is the best way forward."
And Cllr Peter Pragnell, who worked with the trust during a spell as leader, said: "Over the last 18 months we have seen that the trust is an extremely competent group and I feel much happier that these people will be in charge of the pier rather than the current owners."
Observer editor Keith Ridley praised the council's decision, saying: "Since we started this campaign we have seen more than 3,000 people sign a petition and countless others put our Save Our Pier posters up in their windows.
"The people have certainly spoken so well done to the council for listening."
Are you pleased with the council's decision? Will the trust do a good job (we think it will)? What sort of things would you like to see on the pier? Leave your comments below.
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Hastings
Sunday 05 February 2012
Today
Cloudy
Temperature: 1 C to 5 C
Wind Speed: 12 mph
Wind direction: North
Tomorrow
Light showers
Temperature: 1 C to 5 C
Wind Speed: 10 mph
Wind direction: West
