Redevelopment of Meridian Centre in Peacehaven including new Morrisons and town square approved

On Wednesday (April 19), Lewes District Council’s Planning Committee considered long-awaited proposals to demolish the Meridian Centre, replacing it with a Morrisons superstore, 10 smaller retail units and a new library space.

The plans, which were first revealed by the supermarket chain back in 2021, also include some enhancement of the Community House building and the creation of a pedestrian ‘town square’ area.

Several committee members praised the scheme, including Peacehaven West councillor Nicola Papanicalou (Con), who said: “This is such a great development for the town. The Meridian Centre has been deteriorating for well over 30 years.

“There really is nothing for residents in the Meridian Centre; it is a sad and sorry state so to have this development is such an asset for this town.

“There were a number of open days, which were very well attended by local residents and I know there was a lot of positive feedback.”

While unanimously approved, some committee members did raise some reservations about elements of the scheme. These included concerns about the visual appearance of the final design, the way in which the building process would proceed and the loss of shopping facilities from Peacehaven town centre during construction.

Leigh Palmer, the council’s head of planning, cautioned committee members to not ‘throw out the baby with the bathwater’ on these concerns, however, stressing that the development was one “focused on deliverability”.

Concerns had also been raised around the size of the new library, as the 302 sqm unit proposed would be smaller than the previous Meridian Centre facility.

However, these concerns were directed at the policies of East Sussex County Council, not the development proposals themselves.

For its part, East Sussex County Council says it had been looking to downsize the library to “smaller, more cost effective premises” since 2018, as the previous facility was considered to be larger than required.

Library campaigners, however, argue that the facility should be significantly bigger to reflect the growing population of Peacehaven.

Notably, the plans presented by Morrisons include a similar-sized unit directly adjacent to the library space, something library campaigners hope could lead to a larger facility being provided.