Council has lost the plot

I read with great interest Leslie Gibbons’ letter about the rising cost of developing the Devonshire Park complex.

As a former conference organiser I am incensed by the delays, which are resulting in massive theatre, tennis and conference revenue losses to the town.

What is going on? Surely, this work would have had the highest priority, and whoever is responsible for managing the project, would have been made aware of the serious impact any delays will have.

They will also have been made especially aware that local tourism depended on that work being completed ahead of the Arndale Centre development starting.

Why is the council’s eye not on the ball here? A number of things come to mind. We’ve had a borough council merger with Lewes, and now a proposed new swimming pool is to be built. Previous to this, the sale of the Downs land was taking up considerable council time. Whoever agreed to these major developments all being run at the same time didn’t consider the negative impact on local businesses, residents and visitors over several years. I’m afraid as a local council tax payer my confidence in the current administration is diminishing, as they appear to have lost the plot.