Gardens that were to turn town into Biarritz

The report talked of the changing face of Bognor Regis with regard to the 'latest example of modernity so quickly establishing itself in the heart of serene and defiant Victorianism'.

The report continued: "It is the start of what the planners hope to make into a British Estoril, Biarritz, Monte Carlo or Las Palmas '“ svelte, elegant and progressive in the modern trend of architecture."

With such a report, I just had to look further into the development, and was quite surprised at what I found.

The area in question is around the Marine Park Gardens of Aldwick.

It was in 1926 when the Bognor Regis Urban District Council bought 23.5 acres of land with a bordering on the Aldwick Road, the Esplanade and Mill Lane, today known as Nyewood Lane.

Mr W H B Fletcher owned this land and at an auction at the Royal Norfolk Hotel the council paid 15,500. Mr Fletcher retained the rights to the seafront, foreshore and tamarisk hedge, hoping that in future they would pass to the local authority.

The council then proceeded to sell some of the land to developers but the council also retained some land running parallel to the sea to develop it as a public garden.

This became the Marine Park Gardens we know today.

In 1931, there was a brochure produced by developer and builder H W Seymour, with regard to a new development '“ that of the Marine Park Estate.

The brochure stated: "It was designed with a view to refreshing the memories of those who are acquainted with the district of West Sussex; it is a straightforward statement of fact, devoid of sentiment or stupid padding and will, we hope, create in those contemplating retirement or residence in the south, a desire for further detailed information."

The brochure reported on the climate and vicinity, and advised future buyers about the type of homes, bricks and mortgages available, and continued: "The Marine Park Estate is freehold, and lies immediately on the west of Bognor Regis, but enjoys the facilities offered by the town in respect to electricity, water, gas, main drainage."

Advertising literature still used the visit of the King on a positive note, with comments like, 'the sea front is continuous with that of Craigweil House and Aldwick, and thus offers the sheltered healthfulness and wholesomeness, that was such a telling factor in guiding His Majesty's physicians to select Bognor Regis as the venue for His Majesty's convalescence'.

This estate was finally developed and consisted of the area we now know as Wessex Avenue, Princess Avenue, Selsey Avenue, Kings Parade and Silverston Ave.

No doubt potential purchasers were to enjoy the attributes of this estate as described further in the brochure that the estate was 'so situated that invasion by trippers, charabanc parties and others is indeed a remote contingency. Thus, residents can enjoy the quiet serenity of the seaside, minus the jangle of bands, Pierrots and other impediments, inevitable common to more public parts'.

By 1935, the work had also been completed on the gardens, and they were opened by William Fletcher, who performed the opening ceremony by cutting a ribbon with a special pair of scissors.

Many years later the Bognor Regis Local History Society also used these scissors when it performed the opening ceremony of its museum in Hotham Park.

In 1936 the gardens were illuminated to enliven the area. The main decorative feature of the park was the fountain, which had an incredible 63 jets of water which '˜emitted whirling sprays of water' over the figure in the centre.

There were also four floodlights with special silvered glass reflectors to play on the water sprays to make a focal attraction in the park.

The next major event for this area was mentioned at the beginning of this article '“ in 1967 when another development was to take place, the main contractors were advertising the construction of '˜Marine Parade' on Kings Parade.

The development was to consist of an '˜ultra-modern group of elegant flats for those who are seeking only the best for living on the coast'.

These flats were offered for sale from 6,250 to 8,500 each with a ground rent of 30 per annum, which I am sure today's resident would welcome!

The flats were carpeted with maximum sound insulation. I was interested to read one of the attributes of these flats was the introduction '˜from across the Atlantic... comes the highly effective automatic porter operating from the outer lobby door on the ground floor when the flesh and blood porter locks up at dusk. This consists of a microphone for callers, etc, etc'. An interesting addition then, but one, which today we take for granted in blocks of flats.

These constructions were not without opposition from other residents, because they believed they broke a covenant, which stated '˜no house or building erected on any part of the land shall be used for any other purpose than as a private or professional resident, or as a private school or for the letting of apartments'.

Those opposing these developments felt any relaxation of the rulings would '˜lead to the collapse of the whole system of control on the estate'.

In 1968, Princess Alexandra visited Bognor Regis to open the Russell Hotel, which had been bought by the London Association for the Blind and been adapted to take blind and partially-sighted guests.

While in Bognor Regis she also opened a scented garden, which was created by Bognor Regis Urban District Council in Marine Park Gardens, which at that time contained 18 different varieties of aromatic plants, each with a name plate printed in braille. Now, of course, this hotel has been demolished and rebuilt ready for all the new holidaymakers requiring their service.

Regretfully this garden has been lost over the years but in 1999 the Aldwick Parish Council proposed to recreate such an area of garden as part of their millennium projects. However, I am not sure whether this was ever started.

If you join the people who regularly walk around the Marine Park Gardens, I think you will be surprised at what you can find. Firstly, well-kept and maintained gardens, which are well used by all age groups. However, if you look deeper, you will find a number of commemorative plaques.

One is to Mr and Mrs Bill Draper who spent many hours in the park, but Bill spent time with his father in the designing stages of the park.

There is another sign, providing an interesting glimpse into the past history of the clock, which overlooks the park.

Finally, across the road at Sandmartins, the retirement home, there is a blue plaque denoting this was the site chosen by author R C Sherriff, to build his home. It was from here he wrote Journey's End as well as Fortnight in September, which tells the story of a family coming from London by train to spend their holiday in Bognor.

The seafront lights were extended to the park in 2004, with the assistance of Aldwick Parish Council.

A couple of months ago, I received an email from Australia with a picture attached, asking me if the picture was in fact from Bognor Regis.

It belonged to a group of family photos taken in 1946 by the writer's mother. So you see how far away pictures of this very pleasant spot have travelled. Take a stroll along the seafront to see the history enclosed within this area.