It is disgraceful that, despite winning a government appeal, the Downs Baptist Church is being prevented from building a church complex on the old Sunblest site in Woodingdean.
The Brighton and Hove City Council spokesman is reported as saying there was little land for industrial development and it was needed for creating jobs.
The appeal was allowed because it was shown there is an excess of industrial land for development in the city and the church complex would provide jobs in catering and possibly nursery facilities and letting rooms for other firms on the site to use for meetings or product launches.
The council itself uses the church at present for placements for training in youth work.
What monitoring procedures are in place to check what happens to successful planning applications if officers block these when they do not get their own way?
I am also dismayed no planning applications have been granted for the two industrial units submitted last year.
If the architects' panel does not like the design, it should tell the developer what would be acceptable.
Councillors on the planning committee should not allow this derelict site to continue in its present state, especially as money was allocated to aid its development when the earlier businesses moved out.
And what are our local councillors, Stiles, Wells and Simson doing, apart from wringing their hands?
-Joan Moorhouse, The Brow, Woodingdean
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