NEW COMMUNITY CENTRE

SALTDEAN COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION

The new committee is now in situ and we would like you to be aware of the activities that are run at the Community Centre. If you would like to suggest something new to be run please let us know. The Centre is also now available for parties and one-off bookings on Friday and Saturday afternoons and evenings. We do encourage you to use the Centre to make it a vibrant centre for the area.

SALTDEAN COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION
The new committee is now in situ and we would like you to be aware of the activities that are run at the Community Centre. If you would like to suggest something new to be run please let us know. The Centre is also now available for parties and one-off bookings on Friday and Saturday afternoons and evenings. We do encourage you to use the Centre to make it a vibrant centre for the area.

  • CIVIL SERVICE PENSIONERS ALLIANCE - Monday morning monthly Evelyn George 308665
  • CIVIL SERVICE RETIREMENT FELLOWSHIP - Monday morning monthly Derek Redfern 695851
  • LEGS, BUMS & TUMS + PILATES (ROSEMARY CONLEY) - Weekly Monday mornings in the Main Hall. Mrs Danielle Francis 01273 584984
  • MODERN SEQUENCE DANCING - Monday afternoons John Neal 583636
  • WEIGHT WATCHERS - Monday evenings Lower Hall Lucy 587284
  • YOGA - Monday and Tuesday evening and Thursday morning Breeda Duggan 233608
  • BRIDGE CIRCLE - Monday evenings Helga Glasby 734031
  • SALTDEAN & DISTRICT CHOIR - Tuesday 9.45am Audrey Pickles 303596
  • SLIMMING WORLD - Tuesday 5.30pm Lower Hall Terri Heal 245887
  • TUESDAY EVENING BINGO CLUB - Weekly 7.30pm start.
    Contact Derek Fisher 304315
  • LITTLE STARS - Activities 0 - 4 yrs - Music, stories and play. Wednesday and Thursdays Lower Hall Sharon Ward 308018
  • ROSEMARY CONLEY DIET & FITNESS CLUB - Wednesday mornings and evenings Kim O'Dell 01293 523495
  • ART & CRAFT CLUB - Wednesday afternoon Irene Beardwell 303745
  • GOOD COMPANIONS - 1st Wednesday monthly 2.15 Rita Neave 306477
  • THURSDAY CLUB - 2nd and 4th Wednesdays monthly Mrs Chris Jones 588124
  • ECKANKAR - 3rd Wednesday monthly evenings - contact Dale Bains 308656
  • SALTDEAN OVAL WOMENS INSTITUTE - 2nd Thursday monthly 10am Hilary Grimshaw 304643
  • SATURDAY BRIDGE - Lillian Payne 300622
  • BALLET & TAP DANCING - Children & Adults various days Victoria Richards AIRD AISTAD 461691

For further information contact the Community Association on 01273 304617or to hire the hall contact the Lettings Officer Alex Thomas on 07804 908 609. The Secretary is Liz Kempshall on 01273 702695

There was reported in the December LINK magazine a very positive and constructive meeting between Brighton and Hove City Council/local traders/and the Joint Working Party of the Association/Saltdean Residents\Association and the head lessee and his architect earlier this year. There now follows a period of intense legal work.

  • Discussion regarding the future of the Community Centre at the SRA meeting Monday 28th October

Duncan Ward reported on the number of replies that he had received from the slips from the resident which had been put into the local Leader and collected in Longridge Avenue post office, the Happy Shopper and some to his home address.. He said that when he had collated the replies initially it had been quite decisive in favour of a new building - 60% for a new building and 39% in favour of retaining the old building. These were 82 replies for retention and 127 for a new building. He had then received a further 60 replies from one resident mostly in favour of retention bringing the total up to 211 replies. Which were 142 in favour of retention and 127 in favour of a new building. Two were undecided. There were various comments on the reply slips with concerns about the site and cost of a new building. One resident stated that she hadn't received the Resident and Duncan reported that 3900 go out with the Leader and that if they weren't received then we should call the Leader and complain. For this last one with the voting slip, extra copies were put out in the above ships. Mrs George confirmed that unfortunately, as meetings at the community centre needed to be booked a year in advance, the meeting with Brighton and Hove council and the landlord was due to be held at 12.00 am straight after the meeting so that they would be able to report more after. The landlord himself had offered to pay for a new centre. One resident reported that they had received a leaflet informing them that the Oval would be developed on with a sporting hall and a lake - several other residents agreed they had received the leaflets as well. Mrs George said that she couldn't comment as she hadn't seen the leaflet but she didn't think that this was at all viable. Another resident believed that there had been a compulsory purchase order on the golf house. This as not denied or confirmed. Marina Baker stated that the community centre wasn't perfect and it would take a lot of hard work to do it up. Councillor David neighbour stated that we could be left with a new transitory building and the current centre could be lost forever. We also need to save Saltdean's green space and we need to be organised and save the building. It is the only community centre for the while area and this should be a chance to unite and say this is out community centre. Councillor Liz Lee asked that the East Saltdean councillors be kept involved as this issue effected their residents too. Des Turner stated that he had asked Brighton and Hove Council with copies of the relevant lease documents 2 months ago but they hadn't got back to him. We would have no guarantee that any other building would get planning permission if built and it would not be solid. Councillor Smith informed the meeting that the lease ran out in 2004 so today's meeting would be the first of many. The library is apparently safe and Brighton and Hove Council have apparently signed another 25 year lease. Mrs George underlined that the financial aspect of the building was of vital importance.

  • Retain the Existing Building

The present building is old and would need a lot of money spent on it to bring it up to modern standards.
A lift would be required to give access to the first floor for the disabled and infirm. Many will be aware of the difficulties that have been encountered in trying to locate a suitable position for it and to receive the appropriate permissions. The building also has a lot of wasted space with pillars, steps and other obstacles.
Pursuing this option may take time, effort and expense. At the end of the day it could also result in nothing.
The SRA will also try to ensure that the building is not developed into something that is not in keeping with the area. The SRA do not know the intentions of the lessee at present, all that is known is vacant possession is required. If a new lease was granted the rent could be higher and make it difficult to manage.

  • New Purpose Built Building

The Lessee has offered to build a new purpose built building providing vacant possession is given by the Saltdean Community Association. The SRA does not know the location of the proposed building, size or appearance but the SRA will be keen to see that it is of suitable size for the communities needs. The building will offer modern facilities, and hopefully be on one level. No one would wish to see the loss of this facility in this area.

  • Your views...............

The recently published newsletter from the SRA comes as something of a surprise to me and I am sure to many other residents of Saltdean. The shock stems from the realisation that what was seen as an integral part of the community fabric, namely the Community Centre is soon to be lost to us.

The SRA has come up with a survey which we are asked to respond to. However my concern is that maybe we need more detail in order to provide an informed response. For example it would be really interesting to know the details of the discussions that took place within the SRA committee before they came up with the options on the response slip. The options as detailed are perhaps not the only ones considered ! In addition information about who the lessee is, what is happening about the lease for the library, and what the lessee is likely to do with the "old" community centre would be helpful.

If anybody has any ideas as to where this sort of information is available can they let me know.

Laurence O'Connor
Cissbury Crescent

The SRA appears to be suffering from sour grapes. In the January issue of its newsletter, The Resident, it claims just 82 residents voted for retaining our existing community centre, while 127 people voted for a new
purpose-built building.

The report goes on to say "60 replies were received in a collective response, after the votes had been counted, in favour of retaining the existing. [sic]"

The SRA knows full well that this means 142 people voted to save Saltdean Community Centre. These votes were collected by concerned residents and handed in on the day of the deadline. It was not a collective vote, it was sixty individual votes (each containing the name and address of individual Saltdean residents). These were no more collective than any of the other
votes.

But the SRA obviously has plans of its own and will ignore the wishes of the majority who took the time and trouble to vote. I wonder why? Can some one from the SRA please explain here on the debate page?

Is it because the SRA and the Community Association (the body responsible for selling off our community building) are now in bed with one another? If so, we should be told what this means. Is it because the Saltdean Community project (whatever that is) is just so wonderful, we should all be happy to discard the building we already have? If so, we should be told.

There's a lot more to this than meets the eye, me thinks. And it begs the questions: if it is decide that Saltdean should have a new building, where will it be built, what will happen to the old one, what will happen to all that money raised to install a lift, and who decides: SRA members or the executive? That Evelyn George strikes me as a capable and sensible woman. Can she set my mind at rest before it becomes over-burdened with conspiracy theories?

Marina Baker

Have you got an opinion over this issue and could you email me with it - anonymously if you wish - I can post them on the site and pass them onto the SRA.

Please email me here