A KEY meeting was held at the De La Warr Pavilion in February to discuss how £20 million of government investment can be used to benefit the town.
Adam Hawksbee, the interim chairman of the Government’s Department of Levelling Up Housing and Communities Towns Unit made a whirlwind visit to the town to discuss plans with various interested parties.
Among those present at the meeting were Bexhill and Battle Conservative MP Huw Merriman, members of Rother District Council and a group of influential local businesses and community stakeholders.
Mr Hawksbee is visiting all of the 55 towns that will share in the £1.1 billion of government funding which is being distributed as part of the Long Term Plan for Towns.
Bexhill is due to receive £20 million of that funding over the course of the next decade to help kick-start regeneration initiatives encompassing heritage and the town centre, safety and security and transport inter-connectivity.
Bexhill Chamber of Commerce and about a dozen assorted stakeholders were invited to meet with Mr Hawksbee and his team at the De La Warr.
At the meeting attendees were briefed on the exact nature of the funding and to discuss Bexhill’s needs and aspirations for regeneration.
Among those at the meeting were representatives from the De La Warr, Bexhill Chamber of Commerce, the Pelham, Heart of Sidley, Men’s Shed, Bexhill Maritime, Bexhill Museum, Living Communities, and East and West Sussex.
Derek Merkl of Men’s Shed emphasised the difficulties faced by social enterprises to find cost effective premises while Ollie Jeffs of the Pelham stressed he is keen to support youth-based initiatives in the town.
Bexhill Maritime also underlined how important it is to have high-profile landmark investment in such initiatives like the proposed Maritime Heritage Centre.
Trace Love, Vice-President of Bexhill Chamber of Commerce, highlighted the difficulties the town is having difficulties attracting new businesses due to the poor quality of building stock and lack of incentives to invest in Bexhill.
Both Mr Martin and Stewart Drew, Chief Executive of the De La Warr, were keen to address some of the technicalities regarding the funding delivery.
However, both were reassured by Mr Hawksbee that it would be targeted at frontline requirements rather than being swallowed up by administration costs.
Mr Martin said he was encouraged by what had been addressed at the meeting and sees the funding as being of huge benefit to Bexhill.
He added: “It proved to be a great meeting and it was important for all interested parties to be involved in the discussions.
“It is what the town really needed to get a grip on this game-changing investment and when used wisely, it will prove to be of huge benefit.
“We all want to pass on our thanks to Adam and his team for coming down and taking the time to meet up.
“It was extremely encouraging to hear that the Town Board will be fully supported and be community and business led.
“It (the meeting) clearly supported the notion that the Government is serious about these funds being spent and allocated from the bottom up rather than the top down.”
What is patently clear, though, is that moving forward the Town Board needs to adopt a clear-thinking strategy to ensure the investment is wisely spent.
Bexhill still suffers in the shadow of neighbouring towns such as Eastbourne and Hastings which have benefited from significant investment in recent years.
Bexhill town centre still looks shabby in comparison, especially streets such as Devonshire Road and Western Road with far too many commercial properties remaining empty, such as the former Edinburgh Woollen Mill premises.
But the impending arrival of Peacocks is certainly a step in the right direction and hopefully other businesses will follow suit.
Nevertheless, there is still plenty of work to be done and that work needs to start sooner rather than later.
