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Huge boost for UK’s famous seaside town, with £750,000 to spend ‘ | United Kingdom | News
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Huge boost for UK’s famous seaside town, with £750,000 to spend ‘ | United Kingdom | News

Part of one of the UK’s most popular seaside towns is getting an overhaul as part of a multi-million pound renovation plan.

Madeira Terrace in Brighton will spend £750,000 renovating the terrace, which has been closed for 12 years.

The stretch of 865m seafront arches was deemed unsafe for visitors and now, as part of the Historic England grant, it will be completely transformed.

Maderia Terrace will first have 28 of its 151 arches and bays repaired.

A brand new, fully accessible elevator will also be installed, with construction work expected to begin this month.

The Terrance, designed by Philip C Lockwood, was built between 1890 and 1897 during the reign of Queen Victoria to provide locals and holidaymakers with a place to enjoy sea views.

Now the Maderia Terrance renovations are part of a wider project to develop the waterfront around Brighton Centre, a conference and exhibition centre.

The venue has seen bands from all over the world perform there, including The Jacksons, The Who, Queen, Bob Marley and The Wailers.

Plans for the seafront also include an extension to Churchill Square shopping centre, which will provide a new conference center and replacement entertainment venue for Brighton.

Tom Foxall, Regional Director of Historic England, said: “The restoration of Madeira Terrace is an ambitious but necessary undertaking to secure the future of this extraordinary structure for the people of Brighton & Hove.

“The essential funding will help de-risk the early stages of the project. We fully support the council’s repair strategy and look forward to the imminent start of work on site.

Planning applications have also been submitted to Brighton and Hove Council to widen Hove Beach, which was also submitted after fears of flooding and erosion in the town.

If accepted, the extension would see a new shore protection structure built on the beach, involving a field of groynes, with bays filled with thousands of tonnes of shingle between each groyne.