Restoration plans for the Madeira Terrace have been scaled back further to reduce costs, even as £3 million more is set to be injected into the project.
A report to Brighton and Hove City Council’s cabinet said during the tendering process the leading big was “high on quality” but “significantly over budget”.
As well as cost-saving measures and appointing a contractor, the cabinet is asked to increase the budget by £3 million during a special meeting on Monday 12 August.
The increased budget will cover the cost of restoring 28 of the 151 arches and keep the new, second lift, which is described in the report to cabinet as an “important element for improving access to the seafront”.
Cost-saving measures include removing benches below the deck as there are integrated wall benches, and removing the deck planters and back-to-back seating, to make the walkway a flexible space.
During detailed discussions between council officers and a team of professional experts about cost-cutting measures.
The team including conservation architects Purcell, structural engineers HOP cost consultants MGAC and mechanical engineers.
Engineering cost reductions include changing the method for constructing the concrete deck, and replacing cast iron facing plates and gutters with mild steel.
The paint system is changed to allow for a single supplyer for cast iron repair and painting, which is expected to improve workflow.
The report said: “Do nothing is not an option for the retaining wall for the A259 and will shortly require works.
“By not proceeding at this time, it will also jeopardise future phases.”
Further funding for the restoration is being sought from Historic England.
Approved borrowing is to spend up to £9.235 million from corporate funding, borrowing, grants from Historic England, the council’s Carbon Neutral Fund, the Local Transport Plan, crowdfunding donations, and bequests.
If the £3 million is approved, an annual repayment of £419,700, is expected for 15 years, reducing to £393,000 once the Carbon Neutral Fund is paid back.
The special cabinet meeting is due to start at 2pm at Hove Town Hall on Monday 12 August. The meeting is scheduled for webcast on the council website.
This will never be done come on council just tell the truth you don’t and will not do anything until it’s condemned knocked down and then planning permission given to your brown envelope friends for designer flats and private parking
Meanwhile , VG3 goes ahead.
Currently estimated to cost the local taxpayer £7m and guaranteed to cause more congestion and pollution ( the Council’s own consultants stated this)
Just cut those modern horrific lift shafts out which do not belong in a Grade II* Listed structure and slash the Consultant bill. You give consultants your watch and then pay them to tell you what time it is.
…and they’ll probably cock that up!!
If you read the report to cabinet you’ll see that removing the lift would mean a complete re-tender being required which would mean the scheme would take even longer to get started let alone built.
It’s also required to make the terraces fully accessible.
This is what happens when you use AI to generate copy. It is riddled with spelling mistakes, non grammatical and nonsensical word clusters.
Unfortunately, I think that’s just Barry’s style. Although to his point, I find G2L buildings appearing to be an unnecessary barrier to modernisation. I’m aware that comes across as quite antipreservationist.
So I would like to see the actually name of the company that is tendering, as they are probably owned by a friend of a councillor.
The name will be released once the contract is awarded.
Stop VG3.Divert the money to the Arches.Do something that residents want for a change ! That means you Cllr Muten and your fantasy!
Using mild steel instead of cast iron in a seafront location will be a disaster as it will corrode before the paint has dried! The restoration of the city’s historic architecture and infrastructure should come before vanity projects such as VG3. It is disappointing that personal preferences are being put before basic necessities. When will the penny drop with our elected councillors?
Unfortunately, cllr Muten is in bed with the cycling lobby, so vg3 gets prioritised, despite the fact that Muten himself knows it will be an expensive disaster
He’s not paying so he couldn’t careless
I’m with you regarding material choice. Mild steel will just corroded in an exposed seaside location, however it’s coated. I’d like to think the design consultants would point this out to the non-engineering skilled councillors.
We live in hope…
This will have been recommend by the consultants!
That’s a worry!
I have in general stopped commenting here as the site has gone the same way as the argus with unstantiatiated comments about brown envelopes etc .
At least you’ve invented a new word
It’s the same person, to be fair.
You could choose to ignore those comments Christopher.
Perhaps we should celebrate a start to this project. Would those that object prefer this not to happen?
Most of us would want more and hope that this is the beginning of restoration of all the arches.
Unfortunately Brighton council like most councils have had massive cuts from Tory governments over the last 14 years
So well done Brighton and Hove labour lead administration for starting this fantastic restoration
You make a good point. Do get dragged into the negatives sometimes. It’s been a while, so it is good to see the project finally rolling.