Two blue plaques have been unveiled to mark completion of a luxury seafront apartments complex.

David Sumner, chairman of the Worthing Society conservation group, conducted the ceremony at the Warnes, near Splash Point, Worthing.

The 72 flats were constructed on the site of the famous Warnes Hotel, which in the early years of the 19th Century became a mecca for pioneering motorists.

The plaques are attached to the south-facing wall of the landmark building at its junctions with Steyne Gardens and York Road.

Mr Sumner recalled in his younger days being impressed by the "swank" and posh cars associated with the Warnes, which was a row of terraced houses before being converted into a hotel.

Mayor Tom Wye said: "I used to stand with the backside hanging out of my trousers watching in awe as the great and good arrived in their posh cars."

Coun Wye said: "We don't want any more of these hideous Sixties' buildings in Worthing. We have been left a terrible legacy from the Sixties and I will be very glad when we can knock them down."

The Steyne Gardens plaque recalls that hotel guests included King Edward VII, King George V, Emperor Haile Selassie and Winston Churchill.

It closed in 1985 and was burned down in 1987.

The York Road plaque notes that George Warne, an early motoring enthusiast, promoted his new hotel as the Motorists' Mecca, establishing the first hotel garage in York Road in 1900. It was demolished in 1947.

Monday, July 24, 2006