Million-pound regeneration of Worthing town centre street gets mixed reaction

Last week, Worthing Borough Council announced the £925,000 pedestrianisation and modernisation of Portland Road, funded by West Sussex County Council and a local growth fund.

The Herald’s story attracted more than 240 comments on Facebook after going online last Wednesday, the majority of which were negative.

Trudi Starling said both councils had got their priorities wrong.

“If there’s that much money available build some council houses so that young people can afford to live here,” she commented.

“Resurface the roads properly instead of bodging everything up all the time. Put more seating in Montague Street so that the elderly and disabled feel it’s worth bothering to make the effort to get there. Personally I don’t care if I never see the town centre again.”

Keith Turner said the councils should focus instead on fixing potholes and reducing parking prices into town – as well as encouraging better shops to open. It was a view shared by the majority of detracting commenters, who mostly urged the council to focus on filling vacant shops and drawing more people to the centre.

The council said the plan was to create a ‘safe and inclusive space’ for people to enjoy during the day and into the evening.

Business leaders such as the Town Centre Initiative have long said the future of the town centre lies in creating leisure experiences, rather than the conventional shopping centre model.

The switch to online shopping during the pandemic has only accelerated that trend.

Richard Philp agreed and said it was a ‘chicken and egg scenario’. “Make a place presentable and businesses and people will follow,” he said. “We all know town centres will be changing with more online shopping likely to increase, so people want to have an experience. Hopefully they’ll start including areas and zones that offer an interactive charming experience. Step in the right direction I think.”

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