Major developments for Brighton’s future

It’s Brighton, it’s 2018, and everything is changing! If you have been paying attention walking around Brighton over the last year, you will have noticed the building site currently located on Circus Street.

While in this gloomy wet and cold January it might be hard to stare at a building site and dream of anything upbeat, that is exactly what you should be doing.

There will be 142 much-needed sustainable new homes and managed accommodation for up to 450 students. The scheme will also deliver a modern office building including over 30,000 sq ft of flexible office space to help growing creative and digital businesses remain and flourish in the city.

New green spaces are also an integral part of the site, including a new public square providing a central outdoor space for a range of creative and leisure activities. 78 new trees will be planted on the development, as well as wall and roof gardens and allotments for food growing.

Here is a video of the demolition from time-lapse company Site-Eye:

This isn’t the only thing going on in the city over the next few years. Over in Lewes Road there are plans for a massive complete rebuild in partnership with Brighton University on the former Preston Barracks site that’s recently been home to the pop-up venture The Field.

The university’s elements of the scheme will see over 800 student bedrooms in five new halls of residence, a new home for our Business School, new learning and teaching spaces, a multi-storey car park, and a new gym and students’ union facilities.

The development, which also includes a new business start-up hub, 369 new homes and additional student accommodation, will also benefit from a new footbridge across Lewes Road linking both sides of the Moulsecoomb campus, new green spaces, improved cycling facilities, café, retail and workshop units.

I think we would all agree that housing and office space have been two of the biggest challenges to the city of Brighton over the last few years, so this will be welcome news for the city.

If you want any more information about either of the projects, you can find out more about the Preston Circus here and the Preston Barracks site here.

By Joe