Opposition parties take action over King Alfred delays

Green councillors joined Conservatives to lay the blame for delays to the King Alfred redevelopment at the Labour administration's door.
King Alfred Leisure Centre, Hove (October 2011)King Alfred Leisure Centre, Hove (October 2011)
King Alfred Leisure Centre, Hove (October 2011)

The motion put forward by Conservative councillor Robert Nemeth formally censured the Labour administration, asked for a named councillor to oversee the project and called on the authority to maximise affordable housing on the site.

Brighton and Hove City Council named Crest Nicholson as the approved developer to build a leisure centre and homes to replace the King Alfred in January 2016, but no deal has been signed.

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Speaking at the full council meeting on Thursday (December 14), Cllr Nemeth said: “The King Alfred is Hove’s biggest ever site scheme.

“No one who is accountable is immersed in it, driving it, chasing it and scrutinising it.”

He suggested the chair of the tourism, development and culture committee as the ideal candidate but Cllr Alan Robins was not a member of the King Alfred Project Board or the Strategic Delivery Board.

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The King Alfred Project Board has not met since 2016, which Cllr Nemeth attributed to ‘difficult’ questions asked by him and Green councillor Tom Druitt.

After describing Crest Nicholson as a ‘ruthless business focused solely on profit’, Cllr Nemeth said: “The situation as it is, is scandalous.

“There should have been a deal in place when they were picked.

“This is exactly the sort of thing that should have been made clear. Signing within weeks was a requirement. It’s the sort of language Crest speak and understand.”

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Labour councillor Clare Moonan described herself as speaking on behalf of her community, as the King Alfred is in her ward.

She reminded councillors the current plans were one of several developed over the years.

Cllr Moonan said: “Councillor Nemeth says why isn’t there a lead member, if there was a lead member he would be saying, why isn’t it cross party, or which committee does it go to.

“If it was under a committee he’d be saying why isn’t it under a cross party project board.

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“Whatever we’ve got he doesn’t want it, he wants something else. Let’s stop focusing on the process, let’s solve the problem.”

Council leader Daniel Yates reminded councillors there are 49 days left to get the deal sealed and criticised Conservative councillors for ‘petty political point scoring’.

He said: “Nobody comes out of the last three and a half years as shining but no one comes out of the last three and a half decades with a shiny look.

“The council as landowner, the developer or the other schemes that had have come through and come and gone.

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“We have seen decades of failed schemes, generations of failed schemes.”

Cllr Yates said he would not take credit or blame for the current King Alfred development proposals and reminded Cllr Nemeth he has sat on the board responsible for the project.

He added: “We should all pay our part and should all get it done.

“We should not be getting a leaflet out of it. We need to be delivering for this city.

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“We should all take our piece of responsibility and taking our share of the solution too. We have 49 days left.”

A Labour amendment to Cllr Nemeth’s motion, saying all parties should be censured was defeated by the Conservative and Green contingents.

Green councillor David Gibson put forward an amendment asking the council’s chief executive write to Crest Nicholson ‘expressing dismay’ that £15.2m in government funding was considered not enough for affordable housing.

It also insisted on 20 per cent affordable housing and suggested a plan B of bringing the development in house if Crest Nicholson does not sign the agreement in January.

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Cllr Gibson said: “The motion doesn’t properly recognised the responsibility and failings of the developer Crest Nicholson and fails to express the anger people feel about how they behaved.

“People tell me how cross they are how a developer is trying to wriggle out of an inadequate 20 per cent of affordable homes.”

Seconding Green councillor Phelim Mac Cafferty said the amendment underlined his group’s concerns and unhappiness about Crest Nicholson’s position.

He said: “This is an unacceptable way to treat councillors and the city and ride rough shod over my residents and the people of Hove who have suffered for far too long with the uncertainty surrounding their leisure facilities.

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“If the market fails to respond to the demands we want on the site the council should explore all options including in house to ensure we have a secure development in the future.”

Councillors voted unanimously in favour of the Green amendment.

The final deadline for Crest Nicholson to sign up to the £400 million project to build a new leisure centre with a swimming pool, basement parking and housing, is January 31.