Adur District Council has agreed to work in partnership with the Fishersgate Community Association (FCA) to upgrade the Fishersgate Dome site to provide an improved facility for local residents. The old Dome is unusable and will be demolished. In its place a new link will be built to connect the two remaining wings. Both these wings will be upgraded. .
The original proposal for a community facility within a Dome shaped building was beset with problems from the start with a long drawn out dispute with the original builder who went bust and two fires which severely damaged the partially built facility. After a protracted dispute about how best to spend the insurance monies to benefit the local community an out of court settlement has been reached between the Council and the FCA which will see the Council spending up to £250,000 on completing the project and providing further repairs to the adjoining roller rink.
David Simmons, cabinet member for health and wellbeing, said:
“I am delighted that we have reached agreement with the FCA and we can all now concentrate on providing a first class facility for Fishersgate residents. With the Council taking over responsibility for completing the project I am confident that the building can be completed within budget and to a high standard that will ensure a successful community facility is available for all local residents for many years to come. Adur Council looks forward to building a new relationship with the FCA and working together to best serve the needs of the local community”.
FCA’s solicitor Steven Carrigan of GSC commented
“FCA’s trustees have had to display immense commitment and tenacity over a period of 10 years to get to the point where there is light at the end of the tunnel. This has involved fighting two complex legal actions involving personal exposure to the other side’s costs if they had lost.”
The changes will incorporate a new link building and the renovation of the two existing wings to provide community rooms, kitchen, changing rooms and toilets together with repairs to the roller rink surface.
The next stage for the project is to apply for the necessary planning permission to replace the Dome with a single storey link building. Hopefully work could commence on site in the next few months.