A new £10 million seafront neighbourhood is set to be built.

Plans for a new Regis Quarter on Bognor's seafront have been supported in principle by Arun District Council’s economy committee.

The Regis Quarter would be on the former Brewers Fayre pub and Regis Centre Car Park sites. It would include commercial space, areas for leisure and tourism, overnight accommodation which would potentially include a new hotel and a theatre.

Architects OB Architecture and Fabrik said: “Regis Quarter aims to capture the town’s cultural and creative energy and give it a home.

“Creating a neighbourhood which serves local communities with jobs, workplaces and start-up spaces, and gives a shot of caffeine to the town’s tourist and leisure economies – the jewel in the crown.”

The Brewers Fayre building would be rebuilt as a 400-seat auditorium main hall and a smaller adjacent, open-plan foyer hall, and will include a marquee restaurant, as well as a sky bar on the roof.

It would be wrapped in a transparent facade around the sides facing Place St Maur and the Promenade.

The Regis Centre Car Park site would become a mixed-use development for leisure, retail, workspaces, food and drink, the public realm, car parking and holiday accommodation.

The holiday accommodation section could range from three to eight storeys tall, for up to 120 rooms.

The car park would be up to four storeys tall with 228 spaces, an increase from the existing 175 parking spaces on the site.

The plans are only preliminary, with a feasibility study being approved by the committee to determine market interest, cost and where funding for the plans might come from.

Although the cost for getting the final plans to the planning committee were exempt from public view, the Brewer’s Fayre site plans were estimated to cost the council roughly £10 million, according to the council’s joint interim CEO Karl Roberts.

Mr Roberts said since the council cannot finance the whole project on its own, it would either have to bid for government grants to pay for it, or the council could enter into a joint venture agreement with a private developer to split the costs and profits of the scheme.

He anticipates consultation with Arun and Bognor Regis residents to begin ‘fairly soon’ after the feasibility study was approved, but no exact date was given.

The recently approved Premier Inn plans and the renovated Alexandra Theatre, on the east and west of the site respectively, are not to be included in the scheme.

The Bognor Regis Town Hall directly to the east, and the Bognor Regis Arcade, directly to the north, would not be included either.

Conservative councillor Shaun Gunner said he was concerned about the size of the development ‘overshadowing’ neighbouring houses and the arcade.

He also raised concerns about the new theatre and accommodation competing with the Alexandra Theatre and new Premier Inn once built.

The plans were supported by the economy committee with nine votes for and one abstention.

As part approval for the feasibility study members also agreed to ask West Sussex County Council to release money from their business rates pool, as part of the Arun Growth Deal, to help pay for public consultation and developing plans up to getting planning permission.