PICTURE GALLERY: Demolition of Gildredge Pub

Our photographer Jon Rigby has been taking pictures of the demolition of the Gildredge which has seen huge machinery taking the hostelry apart to make way for the new Arndale Centre extension.

The long-reach machines with concrete “munchers” have been dismantling the buildings so materials can be recycled and that includes the crushing and re-use on site of bricks and concrete from the existing structures.

Works began on site at the end of last week at the back of the former pub on the corner of Terminus and Ashford Roads.

Two time-lapse cameras have been recording the demolition of the pub as it slowly disappears from the landscape to make way for the extension that will change the face of Eastbourne’s town centre.

After the Gildredge has been demolished, work will continue along the stretch of Terminus Road as far as Game. The demolition is expected to take around 10 weeks.

The 170,000 sq ft extension is being funded by Arndale Centre owners Legal & General, and will bring an additional 22 new retail units, around 300 extra car parking spaces, seven restaurants and a nine-screen cinema.

The work is being carried out by construction group Kier, which began work on site in January.

Neil Crawford, Head of Retail & Leisure Development for Legal & General Property, said, “It is exciting to see demolition begin as local people will really start to see huge changes to the town centre now.”