Grand Hotel demolition starts

Traders expressed their delight this week as equipment began to arrive on site to erase this blot on the town centre landscape.

Rother District Council announced last week that it would start legal action to enforce removal of the Grand, destroyed in an arson attack in February 2003, because its August 11 deadline for demolition had passed.

But to the relief of all a section of hoarding was removed on Tuesday and a demolition contractor's skip and exacavator were delivered.

Workers say demolition will begin in earnest at the Sea Rod site next week.

Rother has granted planning permission for the Grand's replacement with luxury flats. A scheme to redevelop the site with a health centre with flats above failed when NHS funding could not be obtained.

Simon Davis took on the Oasis cafe on the nearby Sea Road-St Leonards Road corner a year ago knowing that the eyesore was just up the road.

As he served customers sitting outside in the sunshine on Wednesday with the charred relic still in view, he said of this week's development: "I think it's brilliant!

"In the future you will walk out of the station and, hopefully, see something nice instead of that eyesore.