Claims Burgess Hill Beehive projected 'mismanaged' are strongly denied

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Conservative claims a Burgess Hill project for a new community centre and performing arts venue has been ‘mismanaged’ have been strongly denied by Lib Dems and Greens.

Earlier this month the town council announced proposals for The Beehive, planned to replace the former RBL building in Cyprus Road, would be paused due to spiralling costs of £9.4million up from the £5.5m estimate from January 2019.

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Pru Moore, vice president of the Burgess Hill Conservatives, claimed the Lib Dem and Green coalition had ‘mismanaged the project they inherited in good shape’ from the previous administration.

She suggested they had failed to plan for cost increases and ‘wasted huge amounts of taxpayers money in the process’.

Leader of Burgess Hill Town Council Robert Eggleston pictured with a model of the Beehive outside the former RBL building last yearLeader of Burgess Hill Town Council Robert Eggleston pictured with a model of the Beehive outside the former RBL building last year
Leader of Burgess Hill Town Council Robert Eggleston pictured with a model of the Beehive outside the former RBL building last year

But Lib Dem leader of the town council Robert Eggleston hit back, arguing after taking control in May 2019 they discovered a ‘catalogue of lost opportunities, deficiencies and, frankly negligent acts and omissions’ from the Conservatives which made their plan at the time ‘undeliverable’.

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These included plans to cover £2.5m of the cost from donations and fundraising, the terms of the purchase of the former RBL building which could have potentially led to extra financial liability and the fact no charity had been set up and no planning application prepared or submitted.

Mr Eggleston pointed out that no one could have predicted the Covid pandemic or the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The revised cost estimate reflects the ‘extreme market conditions that exist due to the supply chain problems’ leaving the town council ‘with no alternative’ but to pause the Beehive project.

He made it clear the scheme was only paused and ‘will re-engage with residents on the make-up of those facilities and how they will be funded when it is prudent to do so’.

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Green town councillor Anne Eves described it as ‘ironic’ for the Conservatives to bemoan the ‘loss of facility’ in the town, given their decision to ‘prematurely and unnecessarily’ demolish Martlets Hall. She said that at no time had the Conservative-led district council offered any financial help for the Beehive project and was left out of last year’s bid to the Levelling Up Fund. She said it was ‘time for a major rethink which will have to be carefully considered’.