Residents hold talks about plans for Premier Inn opposite their Bognor Regis apartments

The hotel is associated with Arun District Council’s successful bid for Levelling Up funding. ADC was granted more than £12 million to regenerate the Alexandra Theatre and recently agreed to contribute £3 million to the project. But it cannot do so without permission from head leaseholder Whitbread PLC.

The company may be willing to surrender its lease in exchange for a £750,000 buy out as well as a 125-year lease for the former fire station site and land next to the Regis Centre, where it would build a 102-bed Premier Inn. Proposals for a hotel are not new as they were mentioned in the council’s original Levelling Up bid. But some Berkeley Court residents who live opposite the site are concerned about the lack of consultation so far.

One resident questioned how the land swap deal could be approved by a handful of councillors on the policy and finance committee, without public involvement. “How is that democracy?” they asked.

Another even suggested that the money be ‘handed back’ to government after hearing that plans to increase theatre capacity to 450 could be scaled back. The original bid outlined how increasing seating capacity by 30 per cent could see yearly audience figures reach 55,000. But discussions during September’s full council meeting suggested there could now be 25 additional seats or two separate auditoriums.

Until planning applications come forward, questions remain over the extent to which the improvements will match those proposed by the council at the time of the Levelling Up Fund bid.

Duane Wadey, a director of Berkeley Court Management Company, said: “Putting a great big hotel there, in my opinion, is not going to bring hundreds of people to Bognor Regis. People aren’t going to be able to park to go into Bognor, shops are suffering as it is. Surely a tourist attraction would be of more benefit?”

Residents will have a chance to share their views once a planning application comes forward for the hotel but some Berkeley Court residents fear this will be too late to influence the design.

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In a previous statement, Louise Woodruff, an acquisitions manager for Premier Inn, said the hotel was expected to bring ‘thousands of additional visitors’ to the town ‘throughout the year’. “I’m certain a new Premier Inn on the seafront will be an extremely popular choice for our customers and will make a positive and long-lasting contribution to the town’s economy when it opens,” she said.