Calls for independent survey to be carried out on Hastings Pier after owner confirms intention to sell
A call has been made for a survey to be carried out on Hastings Pier to determine its current condition following a decision by its owner to sell it.
Hastings and Rye MP Helena Dollimore said she met with councillors and community organisations to discuss how they could work together to protect the pier.
Last month Sheikh Abid Gulzar, who has owned the Grade II listed structure since June 2018, confirmed his intention to sell the attraction.
Mr Gulzar said he had tried 'his hardest' and put all his 'love and money into the pier' but decided to 'let someone else take it on'.
Ms Dollimore said: “With the recent announcement that Hastings Pier has been put up for sale, I organised a meeting with local councillors and community organisations to discuss how we can work together to protect the pier. We are all united in our goal of ensuring that the pier is a valuable community asset for generations to come. The first step in that mission is for the current owner of the pier to conduct and publish an independent survey detailing the current condition of the pier.
“If any groups would like to offer support, please get in touch on [email protected].”
Hastings Pier was registered as an asset of community value in 2019, meaning the local authority must be informed when the owner intends to sell.
Following Mr Gulzar's decision to sell, Friends of Hastings Pier said it intended to submit an expression of interest to the council with a bid to bring the pier 'back under community control'.
The decision by administrators to sell the pier to Mr Gulzar in 2018 caused anger in the town at the time, with the then leader of Hastings Borough Council Peter Chowney saying he was ‘disappointed and angry’ at the decision to sell Hastings Pier to a private entrepreneur.
The pier was sold to Mr Gulzar after a lengthy fundraising bid from the Friends of Hastings Pier, which raised more than £470,000.