Seafront hotel petition under way

Jackie Bialesta from the Save Our Seafront campaign collected the names single-handedly at the Colonnade on Saturday and Sunday. She was lucky as the fine weather brought thousands of sun worshippers to the seafront.

The group is hoping to double the 850 responses collected by regeneration body Sea Space at a recent public exhibition in which three plans for the 60-bed hotel complex were revealed.

Mrs Bialesta said of the proposed development on the putting green: "We are very keen on improving the town and creating more jobs and opportunities for young people. But we feel destroying the beauty of the seafront is not the way to achieve it.

"Peace and beauty are rare to find nowadays and are easily lost forever.

"I was not particularly surprised at the response I got collecting signatures at the weekend. The vast majority of people are passionately opposed to losing that area of green space. I think we could easily collect several thousand signatures."

The three designs for the hotel, leisure, retail, office and residential complex are being considered and a winner will be chosen in early May. The responses collected at the public exhibition are being collated and evaluated by an independent auditor.

A petition is still available to sign outside the Colonnade Cafe. Meanwhile anyone who can help the group by collecting more signatures is asked to phone Joan on 216346.