Counting cost of East Preston Village Hall poll

Last week, the Littlehampton Gazette reported that residents had forced a village-wide vote on the project, which would see the parish council borrow 600,000 to build new offices, extra storage space and toilet facilities.

Arun District Council has arranged the poll for August 25, and the cost of staffing, printing, premises hire and administration will fall on villagers.

"The estimated cost for the East Preston Parish Poll is 3,500, and the cost is recharged to the parish council," said a spokeswoman.

"It can defer payment to the following financial year, but this will be met by the council taxpayers in the parish."

Villager Brenda Whiting, of Sea Lane, said: "The cost of the poll, compared to what has already been spent, and what might be borrowed in the future, is nothing."

Residents have been told that a rise in council tax of 6 a year for a band D property would pay for the new facilities.

Chairman of the parish council, Chris Roberts, said that he believed only a minority of villagers were against the plans.

All 5,500 East Preston electors will be entitled to vote, between 4pm and 9pm, at the village hall, Sea Road, or East Preston Children and Family Centre, St Mary's Drive.

In recent years, town or parish polls have been held in Rustington, Bognor, Aldwick, Felpham and Arundel, and turn-out has ranged from 9.83 per cent to 34.7 per cent.

* For arguments for and against the project, see next week's Littlehampton Gazette.

With the date of the poll fast appraoching, the Gazette looks back over the developments so far:

RESIDENTS have forced a poll on whether East Preston Village Hall should have a 600,000 extension built.

There was standing room only at a public meeting at the Royal British

Legion Club, The Street, on Tuesday night, as villagers, who feel that the project is too expensive, took the decision to go ahead with a parishwide vote on the issue.

The extension, which would include offices for the council staff, storage for the village hall and extra toilet facilities, as well as the

relocation and refurbishment of the children's play area, is expected to

cost about 600,000, but villagers are concerned that the real cost could soar to 1m, after loan interest payments are taken into account.

Speaking at the meeting, Brenda Whiting said: "They are putting this

village into debt for 25 years.

"They will be long gone and we will still be paying for it.

"You will be paying, I will be paying.

"Do we even want it? Well, no one has even asked us."

Of the anticipated 634,000 build cost, an estimated 500,000 is expected to be borrowed from the Public Works Loan Board, with the

rest coming from council reserves, as well as grants from the National

Lottery, and Arun district and West Sussex county councils.

"People think that the money is all coming from grants," said Brenda,

"it's not!

"If you borrow 500,000 it comes to 803,000 over 25 years."

However, chairman of the parish council, Chris Roberts, said that the project would be great for the everyone in the community, and

that the loan would equate to a council tax contribution of 6 per year for a band D property.

He added: "This figure would be absorbed in the precept with no

significant increase in council tax.

"I think that the majority of the people at the meeting were just there

to find out what was going on, and that only a small minority object to

the project."

He added that the poll could give the council a madate.

"It is very important that we have a satisfactory mandate to go ahead.

"If 50 per cent turn out and 30 per cent object, we would be illadvised

to go ahead, but if only 10 per cent object, we would be fully

entitled to."

Peter Bottomley, MP for Worthing West, said the project would be of

great value to the local community, local groups and the parish council.

"The community facilities will allow additional volunteering and

activities," he added.

Arun District Council is now obliged to arrange the poll within 25

days, and the date will be announced in the Gazette,as well as on the parish council website and noticeboards.

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