Shelter Hall piling starts

The latest phase of rebuilding Brighton’s historic seafront Shelter Hall gets underway from early September, as contractors start sinking 135 concrete piles, up to 20 metres into the ground. These will then be capped with a half-metre thick slab of concrete to provide a stable base for the new building.

Around 1450 cubic metres of concrete will be pumped into the site – enough to fill three swimming pools the size of Brighton’s Prince Regent.

Hundreds of cement mixer deliveries will be needed. To accommodate them, a special compound will be created across the layby and prom opposite the Brighton Centre. This will entail a second diversion in the seafront cycle lane to be put in place imminently, shifting it a few metres south into a space shared with pedestrians. An existing diversion to the east will stay.

Piling and capping work is expected to last until around next February. However the compound and cycle lane diversion are expected to be in place until June 2018 to assist subsequent works.

Once groundworks are complete, a reinforced concrete frame will be created. External finishes will mean the new building looking similar to the Victorian structure it replaces.

The new building housing a large destination restaurant, a rotunda café, a retail unit and public toilets is expected to be fully open in Spring 2019. Revenues will help maintain the seafront in future. The council is also reinforcing the A259 to eliminate the risk of it eventually collapsing.

"Trixi mirror" for Lewes Road/Elm Grove junction

The extensive improvements (details here) currently underway at the junction of the Lewes Road and Elm Grove will include installation of a 'Trixi mirror'. 

A Trixi is a convex mirror attached to traffic signals to help drivers (especially HGVs) to see down the side of their vehicle for the presence of people on cycles, especially before turning left. This is a common cause of some very serious accidents in these situations.

In this case the mirror will be positioned under the signal head on Lewes Road southbound carriageway at its junction with Elm Grove.

The complete work is expected to last until 20th November and cause considerable temporary disruption.

West Pier - a Journey through Time

See also: Last days of the West Pier

The Boots corner.

The 100 year-old+ White Lion Hotel building

Photo:RPM

The 1974 modernist building

Photo: RPM

The re-designed, re-clad building. 2017

Boots have had some presence on this corner since 1903. Their modernist store which replaced the White Lion Hotel building & Regent cinema in 1974 at least had architectural integrity. It was designed by Derek Sharp of the Comprehensive Design Group. But its understated. elegant modernism was all but ruined by a re-design in 1998, changing it into a semi-industrial carbuncle. The cladding hasn't weathered well and the ridiculous  mortar-board roofs still look gimmicky and out-of-place. Hopes that it might be replaced by what seemed a fine new store for John Lewis were dashed earlier this year with a change in their plans.

The new seafront landscaping