New health centre on Grand site

The multi-million pound landmark building will be comparable in size to the Grand and also comprise of 15 luxury flats.

The 'one stop' clinic will provide accommodation for 13 GPs and replace the current surgeries in Albert Road and Sea Road.

It will be paid for by private-sector money and leased to Bexhill and Rother Primary Care Trust. The total cost of the scheme is not yet known.

News of the radical plan ends months of speculation about the future of the fire-ravaged hotel site.

The derelict Grand was destroyed by arsonists last February in one of the biggest fires ever seen in Bexhill.

The health centre will be located on the first and second floors of the new four-storey building with below-ground parking.

A planning application for the development is expected soon with a view to opening in the next 12-18 months.

Rother leader Graham Gubby said not only will the centre provide top-class medical facilities for thousands of residents but it could herald the economic regeneration of that part of the town centre.

It's also one of the first indications that the private sector is willing to invest in Bexhill and bodes well for future regeneration projects, said Cllr Gubby.

The London-based General Practice Investment Corporation Ltd is in talks to buy the site from current owner Derek Smith and will then develop the building. Negotiations for the plan have been going on for months.

Bexhill and Rother Primary Care Trust director Simon Lawrence, said: "This is an exciting opportunity to develop a one-stop health centre in central Bexhill with modern accommodation and facilities for patients, GPs and their teams.

"The current premises of the two practices, which are converted houses, are inadequate. The GPs and the Trust recognise that redevelopment or refurbishment of the existing premises is not a viable long-term option.

"A new one-stop health centre in modern premises will improve the level and quality of primary care for local people."

Cllr Gubby added: "This is excellent news.

"We have been working very hard to achieve the long-overdue redevelopment of this site and to able to achieve something that will not only provide the most modern medical facilities for the town but will also compliment the proposals we have for the sustainable regeneration of Bexhill is a real achievement."

He said the new activity in the Sea Road, Endwell Road and St Leonards Road areas would be good for traders and breathe new life into the area.