Fresh plans to finally link Littlehampton’s treasures

On Tuesday evening, Arun District Council’s regeneration sub-committee will be debating the ‘Nine Big Ideas for Littlehampton’ proposal.

The scheme, if eventually approved, would see major investment being pumped in to improve links between the town centre, its river front and the seaside – a long-awaited idea which has been debated before but never fully realised.

Ham Ward councillor Mike Northeast, who sits on the committee, is all for the latest plan, saying the £22million investment to improve Pier Road (see page 12) was acting as the spark for the latest bid.

Speaking to the Gazette, Mr Northeast said: “That was bigger than just a spark, it was the catalyst for this.

“I think this is something that we have to try and grasp with both hands.

“This is a golden opportunity that we are never going to have again.

“We need to use this investment by the Environment Agency as a catalyst. This is the time to get the town and that triangle finally linked.”

The latest scheme, drafted in 2014, will aim to phase in nine different regeneration projects all designed to compliment one another.

Among the proposals is a remodelling of the town’s road and pedestrian links along High Street, St Martins and Beach Road, with a greater emphasis being placed on improving foot routes.

A ‘major reworking and redesign’ of The Green would take place to ‘maximise an underutilised space’, the report claims.

Opportunities to develop around the Windmill Entertainment Centre are highlighted, but in no great depth at this time.

The document also claims the roundabout in Beach Road, by the war memorial, is a problem, creating ‘significant interruption to pedestrians’. It is hoped the junction will be redesigned.

Other schemes include a waterfront marker, which could be a major piece of art to mark the presence of the beach from the town, improvements to the seaside promenade, upgrades to the pier, including new lighting and a look out for crab fishing.

The committee is meeting at 6pm at the Arun Civic Centre, in Maltravers Road.