The Bexhill Enterprise Park: help us get some answers!

January 24, 2014 by combehavendefenders

Sea Change Sussex are still not answering the questions: perhaps you can help them open up?

Sea Change has just been given planning permission for the ‘Bexhill Enterprise Park’, a huge new ’employment area’ around the Gateway Road in North East Bexhill.

Bexhill Enterprise Park, as planned

The seven hectare ‘development’ (including almost 650 parking spaces) will cover land described by Rother District Council thus:

‘… the landscape features woodland, hedgerows, copses, ponds and ditches [and] form[s] part of an important local habitat mosaic. In particular, the abundance of ancient species-rich hedgerows, some with specimen trees, provide habitats for a wide range of birds, small mammals and invertebrates, as well as flight lines and feeding routes for bats. They also host a variety of significant plant species. North to south running hedgerows, which link to the landscape beyond, are most important….As well as bats, there are other protected species, notably badgers, as well as dormice in the area.’

We have repeatedly tried to ask Sea Change Sussex a few pertinent questions about the company itself, the Bexhill Gateway road and the Bexhill Enterprise Park.  In November we put the questions to a Sea Change representative at the Link Road exhibition in Sidley.  Not only did he refuse to answer the questions, he fled into the nearest toilet and called the police.

Sea Change’s “John” freshly emerged from the toilet, company badge removed

Since then, we have emailed the questions to Sea Change, but they’re being uncharacteristically uncommunicative, so we’re inviting others to help.  Please email the following questions to Sea Change at  info@seachangesussex.co.uk, and then email us (combehavendefenders [at] gmail.com) to let us know you’ve done it.

And of course, do let us know if you have any response!

1) Sea Change’s CEO, John Shaw, was formerly the Project Director and Chief Operations Officer of a very similar company called Sea Space. Sea Space developed the South Queensway Enviro 21 business park, as well as Lacuna Place in Hastings. Both are now in receivership. Given this background, is John Shaw a suitable person to be spearheading a huge new development?

2) £4.6m of public money went into Enviro 21. Was Sea Space required to repay this when the project went into receivership?

3) What is the total cost of the Bexhill Gateway Road? Where is the money coming from?  Will any of it be public money?

4) What is the total cost of the Bexhill Enterprise Park?  Where is the money coming from?  Will any of it be public money?

5) How much is Sea Change paying Trinity College for the land around Glover’s Farm?

6) Is the Bexhill Enterprise Park a purely speculative venture, or will it only be built as and when companies sign up? Which companies have said they definitely want space in the park?  If it is speculative, what happens if the space can’t be filled? Who pays?

7) On the NE Bexhill part of the Sea Change website it says ‘The Link Road will provide an easy route for employees in both Hastings and Bexhill to travel to work at companies based there’. What is Sea Change doing to ensure that the development is accessible by public transport?