One of the county's last art deco buildings is to be demolished.

The old bus depot in Cavendish Place, Eastbourne - loved and despised in almost equal measure - will make way for 43 flats and shops.

The Twenties building, which is not listed but is sited in a conservation area, has been condemned as an eyesore.

But historians in Eastbourne say the town's architectural heritage has been eroded over the years and this is yet another example.

Owen Boydell, the chairman of the Eastbourne Society, said: "It would really be a shame to see it go because there are so few buildings of this type in Eastbourne."

The building attracted the interest of a London-based property developer and an application to develop the site went before Eastbourne Borough Council.

But council officers said the £250,000 cost of renovating the building would be too expensive.

Four people wrote to the authority to lodge their opposition and The Argus also received letters from people wanting to see it saved.

Len Williams, of Portland Road, Hove, said: "Surely this interesting art deco building could be restored rather than demolished and replaced with another mediocre modern edifice? But I suppose there will not be as much money to be made out of that option."

Chartered surveyor Roland Gardner, of Eastbourne-based Tingley Commercial, which acquired the site on behalf of the developers, said the building has long been ruled unsafe by structural engineers.

Mr Gardner said if councillors rejected demolition the site would have lay dormant for another five years, causing further structural damage.