Southend Council unveils new vision for the town

The council’s ambitious plans include replacing the town centre bus station with new shops and flats, extending the City Beach towards Shoebury and building more homes in Warrior Square.

The bold plans for the next decade are revealed in the Southend Central Area Action Plan – aimed at attracting both private investment and Government funding.

It marks out 14 areas of the town, seen by the council as ripe for development.

In a move to lend the town a more “continental” feel, planners want to create “Spanish-style steps”, complete with viewpoints, leading from the Seaway car park, off Lucy Road and down to the Golden Mile.

A piazza-style square would be created at the bottom of Southend High Street, outside the Royals Shopping Centre, while the end of the London Road could be paved over to create a “cafe culture” area.

Traders have welcomes the idea of a new lido area with an open-air swimming pool in the central part of the seafront.

Karen Slater, landlady of the Falcon pub, in Marine Parade, said: “A lido in the summer would be fantastic.

“Sunshine and water is what makes people come to Southend.

“And it could then be iced over in the winter to create a winter wonderland down here.”

Southend had a lido until the Eighties, below the Genting Casino, in Western Esplanade, in Westcliff. It was concreted over when the venue opened.

The new lido would be in addition to the £800,000 lagoon planned for Three Shells Beach.

Dawn Jeakings, chairman of Southend Business Improvement District scheme, said: “The cafe culture area ticks my boxes, and Spanish steps would be fantastic.

“There are issues with connecting the seafront to the High Street – we need to open up the area with all the shrubbery on Pier Hill.”

The plans would need Government approval, but could be make a reality as soon as 2017.

The document will also allow the council to promote the town and tell developers the sort of things they want to see built and where.

The council’s head of planning Peter Geraghty said he was confident a lot of the ideas would become a reality.

He added: “This will be a transformation in experience for the town’s visitors and the residents.”

London Road - the vision

Southend Council wants London Road to be a ‘“vibrant gateway” into Southend.

Its aim is to pedestrianise the town centre end of the road, where it meets the High Street, creating outdoor seating for restaurants and bars.

Market traders would also be moved from the High Street to the paved area.

The existing taxi rank would be moved to the west of College Way further down London Road.

The council also hopes this area will have more public art to give visitors a good first impression of the High Street and would encourage the University of Essex to expand into the area.

The council was last year given £6.9million by the Government for improvements to London Road and Victoria Avenue.

Southend seafront - the vision

The council is aiming to lend the seafront a more “continental” look with many of its seafront improvements.

It wants to link Seaway and Marine Parade, with flights of “Spanish steps”, which could include terraced houses and viewpoints.

It also hopes to build a square, or piazza, outside the Royals Shopping Centre and the Palace Hotel to provide a better link between the High Street and the seafront.

A lido would also be built and the £7million City Beach scheme, finished in 2011, would be extended east along Eastern Esplanade.

Council strategic planning manager Matthew Thomas said: “Southend is a tidal town and it provides adults and kids with an opportunity for water recreation. We have seen lidos be successful in London and other coastal towns.”

Town centre- the vision

THE town centre bus station could be torn down and replaced with a development of shops and flats.

The Chichester Road bus station site is regarded as a prime redevelopment site, so the bus facility could be moved to the junction with Tylers Avenue, next to the car park, where there are already bus stops.

Council head of planning Peter Geraghty said: “Although it has only been there for ten years, every building has a finite life, and it would be wise to look at the options for the next ten or 20 years for the site.”

Planners have also suggested Warrior Square car park could be a prime redevelopment site for offices and homes, if a developer shows interest.

The plan also outlines an aspiration for the fire-hit former Empire Cinema, in Alexandra Street, to be used as a “cultural building”.

Does Southend town centre not have 'top quality' hotels and restaurants?

SENIOR council officials admit Southend town centre is short of “high-quality” restaurants and hotels.

The new Southend Central Area Action Plan highlights the need for upmarket hotel chains to open up to encourage people to stay longer in the borough.

Just a tenth of the 5.5million visitors who come to Southend every year stay overnight, despite new attractions and the success of the expanded Southend Airport.

The document says: “The tourism industry survives on low levels of overnight stays, and the relatively short supply of high quality hotels and restaurants in Southend central area may not attract those with money to spend.”

However, Adam English, whose company, Sorrel, is close to completing a £450,000 scheme to make a boutique hotel out of former fisherman’s cottages in Hartingdon Road, off Marine Parade, said: “I don’t think that’s fair.

“There’s something to suit everyone in Southend, and something to suit every budget.

“Southend is a coastal town with a lot of B&Bs. People like that.

“We are trying to inject a bit of modernity into our project, to attract the likes of business travellers.

“We’re looking to bring the sort of Shoreditch hipster vibe to Southend.”

The council has tried to attract hotel chains to come forward with new town centre proposals, but so far only budget chain Premier Inn has opened, building on the former gasworks site in Eastern Esplanade.

It is estimated the town’s economy gains an average of £170 for every visitor staying overnight, as opposed to £40 from day-trippers.

Martin Richardson, who owns the Happidrome Arcade in Marine Parade, agrees the town needs to offer more to attract people to stay longer.

He said: “If you go to Blackpool, they have piers, lights, and trams.

“We have barely any of that in Southend. It’s a 9am to 5pm destination.

We have nothing except amusement arcades after 5pm.

“A lot of foreign visitors who stay overnight and come here to the Happidrome say how disappointed they are. They they ask how far away is London.”

Mr Richardson also pointed out many B&Bs were being used to house homeless people, many from other boroughs. Basildon and Castle Point sent 159 to Southend in 2014/15.

However, Peter Geraghty, the council’s head of planning, said: “We are trying to guide and encourage developers to come to Southend and the action plan contains our ideas.

“We want Southend to be a city and we want it to be City of Culture.”