Town centre improvements hit by double paving issues

First of all, contractors noticed a small area of paving in the middle of the road junction where Terminus Road, Ashford Road and Gildredge Road meet had been constructed slightly out of line.

Then it was revealed paving stones laid on the pavement outside the new Beacon centre in Terminus Road had started to erode away.

The multi-million project by both East Sussex and Eastbourne councils aims to improve the town centre for pedestrians and motorists.

An East Sussex County Council spokesman said, “Our contractor identified a small area of paving across a road junction that had been constructed slightly out of line.

“This would have meant some granite blocks would have been incorrectly aligned with other areas, resulting in smaller blocks being used which would have had a detrimental effect on the appearance of the paving. Our contractor is in the process of removing and replacing the granite blocks in the affected area.

“It’s entirely normal on a project of this nature that from time to time issues arise which need correcting. This work will be carried out at our contractor’s own expense and will not have any impact on the completion date for the scheme.”

Regarding the chipped paving outside Next and H&M, the spokesperson said, “Damage to a number of paving slabs has occurred during additional work undertaken to the outside of the new Beacon centre by their contractor, and by that contractor having to access the new arcade with heavy machinery. All damage will be repaired once external work on the centre is complete and all costs will be recovered from the Beacon centre contractor. In the meantime, we have carried out temporary repairs to ensure the safety of pedestrians and will continue to do so.”