Battle Road Arches
This series of shallow (about 15 foot deep) arches built into a retaining wall between Battle Road and Silverlands Road were utilised as shops between 1910 and the 1950s. For much of the time, however, most of them have been empty and allowed to decay. A number of the arches were utilised as car-repair workshops during the late twentieth century, and another held a guitar school, with a portion of them being hidden by advertising hoardings.
Decay and Enforcement Order
By 2020 the decay had reached a point where the council issued enforcement action on the owners on May 18, 2020 under Section 77 of the Building Act 1984, to either repair or demolish - the structure being now considered unsafe. The footpath on Battle Road adjacent to the arches was closed on the 15th of May 2020 following movement of the arches being detected and the council tweeted "Following complaints we have been monitoring the condition of 2-12 Battle Road, known as Battle Road Arches. Whilst we take further steps to deal with this, colleagues from ESCC Highways have closed the pavement in the interest of public safety.", with Leader of the Council, Councillor Kim Forward expressing disappointment that the structure had been permitted to decay to this point[1];
“It is disappointing that the owners of this structure have let it fall into this state. It is even more disappointing that despite us having contacted them about this they have failed to do anything to address the condition of the structure. We were therefore left with no alternative but to take court action after discussing the results of the monitoring with our structural engineer because of our fears about the danger posed to the public.“
Demolition
Demolition of the arches was planned for the week commencing 15th March 2021, with concrete blocks being placed in Battle Road to protect pedestrians and motorists using the road whilst demolition work commenced[2].
Images
- Images
Battle Road Arches c1930
Battle Road Arches and Duke Road c1958
2-12 Battle Road 2020
References & Notes
- ↑ St. Leonards property owners taken to court over dangerous structure | Hastings and St. Leonards Observer, accessdate: 25 June 2020
- ↑ Letter from ESCC Highways Next Door
File:Notice of road closure - Battle Road 2021.jpgRoad Closure notice 2021
