Mid Sussex District Council ‘remains committed’ to the regeneration of Burgess Hill town centre despite seeing its bid for £18.5m from the government’s Levelling Up Fund rejected.
The pledge was made by leader Jonathan Ash-Edwards during a meeting of the full council on Wednesday (January 25).
The Mid Sussex bid was one of more than 500 made to the fund, with only 111 being successful, including 11 in the south-east.
Mr Ash-Edwards described the decision as ‘very disappointing’ particularly given the ‘very positive feedback and encouragement ‘ the council had received from the government during the bidding process.
Had the bid been successful, the money would have been spent on three key improvements.
Some £13.2m would have gone towards the transformation of the 2.46 hectare Martlets site, with refurbished commercial floorspace, a hotel and 172 new homes.
Another £3.8m would have gone towards the improvement of the public realm along Church Walk, and £1.5m would have been spent delivering a digital hub in the town.
This had been the second round of Levelling Up funding bids – and the second time the council was unsuccessful.
Mr Ash-Edwards said:
“It’s clear that the Levelling Up Fund isn’t the answer to unlocking the challenge of Burgess Hill town centre redevelopment.
“We will now move forward to build on the work that was already in place and being undertaken prior to the Levelling up Fund decision to look at alternative options.”
He added:
“There are no easy solutions – if there were they would have been exercised – but we remain committed to delivering a town centre regeneration in Burgess Hill and will explore all possible options to ensure that can move forward as soon as the market conditions allow.”
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