New lighting on Bognor town hall

A planning application for the five lamps to be installed on the Clarence Road building’s front balcony was approved by Arun District Council’s development control committee last Wednesday.

Two of the LED lights will be placed on the outside of the balcony, with the remaining three on the inside, all cables will be hidden from public view.

The illuminations will be turned off daily at midnight.

Cllr Philippa Bower (Con, Rustington East) said: “I worry we may be sending out the wrong message.

“We have installed solar panels on the Civic Centre in Littlehampton which save energy and we are now going to allow lights on the town hall which will cost money.”

Cllr Mike Northeast (Lab, Ham) told fellow members the modern LED lights where very cheap to run.

“LED flood lights can now be run fairly cheaply, they are very low energy and won’t cost much money,” he said.

The lights will illuminate the top half of the building.

A control box, which will include a timer and manual override, will also be fitted.

This will enable the lights to be set to go on and off at pre-arranged times.

There will be no structural alternations to the outside of the Grade II listed building.

The lighting will be low luminescence and the use of LED lights will create a floodlight effect.

As the building is a prominent feature in the street, it is thought the new lighting will greatly enhance the area and be enjoyed by residents and visitors.

No objections to the plans were received from the public and the committee agreed the application with a majority vote of 11.

Councillors also approved an application for listed building consent to allow the lamps to be fitted at the same meeting.